Mountaineers Defeat Seton Hall
January 10, 2012 10:28 PM | General
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – Redshirt-sophomore Christal Caldwell’s 18 points and nine rebounds led the way for the West Virginia University women’s basketball team to a 79-63 win over Seton Hall at the Coliseum on Tuesday night.
The Mountaineers (12-4, 3-1 BIG EAST) took control of the game from the beginning, jumping out to an early 4-0 lead on back-to-back layups from sophomore Taylor Palmer. The contest would remain close, both teams trading points. A 3-pointer from sophomore Brooke Hampton at the 12 minute mark signaled the beginning of West Virginia pulling away with the lead, 12-7.
From there, the Mountaineers went on a 7-2 scoring run on layups from redshirt-junior Ayana Dunning and junior Asya Bussie, followed by a three from true freshman Linda Stepney to bring the score to 19-9. West Virginia continued to build from that point, heading into the locker room at halftime with a 40-21 lead.
While the Pirates (7-11, 0-4 BIG EAST) attempted a comeback in the second half, using an 8-2 scoring run just past the midway point to bring the score to 63-50, they were unable to get any closer to the Mountaineer lead.
“I’d like to say that we handled their pressure better in the second half, but that wasn’t the case,” said Seton Hall coach Anne Donovan. “They showed why they are nationally ranked defensively. They do a great job taking teams out of their offense and Seton Hall was one of their victims tonight.”
Caldwell has now scored in double figures in the past four games, with 10 points against Villanova, 17 points against UConn and 20 points against Elon.
“It is very important because it gives us another scorer,” said coach Carey. “She (Caldwell) is playing better and we need her to continue to play better.”
Bussie followed close behind Caldwell tonight, just one rebound shy of a double-double having scored 15 points and pulled down nine boards.
Stepney posted 12 points against Seton Hall, while Hampton brought an offensive spark off the bench, ending the game with 11 points.
Hampton has now posted double-figure scoring numbers in each BIG EAST game this season.
West Virginia won the rebound battle, grabbing 37 rebounds in comparison to Seton Hall’s 26. They also forced 13 turnovers including six blocks and eight steals, gaining 16 more points from their defensive play.
West Virginia was also able to shut down the threat both from the field and past the arc as the Pirates shot just 36.4 percent (20-of-55) from the field while only converting 42.9 percent (6-of-14) from 3-point range.
In comparison, the Mountaineers were able to get in an offensive rhythm, shooting 50.0 percent (24-of-48) from the field and 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from beyond the arc.
Of those 10 shots, Hampton and Stepney each sank three, while Caldwell stepped up and sank two.
“We expected No. 4 (Brooke Hampton) to come in and shoot the ball well but I wasn’t thinking No. 22 (Linda Stepney) was going to light us up like she did,” said Donovan. “It is tough. Our weakness is our interior game and their strength is their interior game so if you put any kind of focus on trying to take that away or if you happen to fall asleep on a guard, they make a nice play on the perimeter.”
The Mountaineers also had one of their best games at the line so far, converting 77.8 percent (21-of-27) from the stripe.
Junior guard Brittany Morris led the Pirates in scoring with 24 points and five assists, while senior guard Jasmine Crew scored 23 points. Junior forward Terry Green came off the bench to post 10 points for Seton Hall.
West Virginia returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 14, traveling to Providence to take on the Friars in a 2 p.m. tip. Live stats and audio will be provided by MSNsportsNET.com.
The Mountaineers (12-4, 3-1 BIG EAST) took control of the game from the beginning, jumping out to an early 4-0 lead on back-to-back layups from sophomore Taylor Palmer. The contest would remain close, both teams trading points. A 3-pointer from sophomore Brooke Hampton at the 12 minute mark signaled the beginning of West Virginia pulling away with the lead, 12-7.
From there, the Mountaineers went on a 7-2 scoring run on layups from redshirt-junior Ayana Dunning and junior Asya Bussie, followed by a three from true freshman Linda Stepney to bring the score to 19-9. West Virginia continued to build from that point, heading into the locker room at halftime with a 40-21 lead.
While the Pirates (7-11, 0-4 BIG EAST) attempted a comeback in the second half, using an 8-2 scoring run just past the midway point to bring the score to 63-50, they were unable to get any closer to the Mountaineer lead.
“I’d like to say that we handled their pressure better in the second half, but that wasn’t the case,” said Seton Hall coach Anne Donovan. “They showed why they are nationally ranked defensively. They do a great job taking teams out of their offense and Seton Hall was one of their victims tonight.”
Caldwell has now scored in double figures in the past four games, with 10 points against Villanova, 17 points against UConn and 20 points against Elon.
“It is very important because it gives us another scorer,” said coach Carey. “She (Caldwell) is playing better and we need her to continue to play better.”
Bussie followed close behind Caldwell tonight, just one rebound shy of a double-double having scored 15 points and pulled down nine boards.
Stepney posted 12 points against Seton Hall, while Hampton brought an offensive spark off the bench, ending the game with 11 points.
Hampton has now posted double-figure scoring numbers in each BIG EAST game this season.
West Virginia won the rebound battle, grabbing 37 rebounds in comparison to Seton Hall’s 26. They also forced 13 turnovers including six blocks and eight steals, gaining 16 more points from their defensive play.
West Virginia was also able to shut down the threat both from the field and past the arc as the Pirates shot just 36.4 percent (20-of-55) from the field while only converting 42.9 percent (6-of-14) from 3-point range.
In comparison, the Mountaineers were able to get in an offensive rhythm, shooting 50.0 percent (24-of-48) from the field and 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from beyond the arc.
Of those 10 shots, Hampton and Stepney each sank three, while Caldwell stepped up and sank two.
“We expected No. 4 (Brooke Hampton) to come in and shoot the ball well but I wasn’t thinking No. 22 (Linda Stepney) was going to light us up like she did,” said Donovan. “It is tough. Our weakness is our interior game and their strength is their interior game so if you put any kind of focus on trying to take that away or if you happen to fall asleep on a guard, they make a nice play on the perimeter.”
The Mountaineers also had one of their best games at the line so far, converting 77.8 percent (21-of-27) from the stripe.
Junior guard Brittany Morris led the Pirates in scoring with 24 points and five assists, while senior guard Jasmine Crew scored 23 points. Junior forward Terry Green came off the bench to post 10 points for Seton Hall.
West Virginia returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 14, traveling to Providence to take on the Friars in a 2 p.m. tip. Live stats and audio will be provided by MSNsportsNET.com.
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