No. 20 West Virginia Powers Past Duquesne
December 10, 2014 05:44 PM | General
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Strong-willed efforts from Bria Holmes and Averee Fields propelled the No. 23/20-ranked West Virginia University women’s basketball team to a 79-60 win over Duquesne on Wednesday evening at the WVU Coliseum.
The first half remained close with WVU (7-1) taking a 40-32 halftime lead over the Dukes (5-4). West Virginia used a 10-0 run midway through the second half to secure its 14th consecutive win inside the Coliseum. That home win streak is tied for the fifth longest in the country. WVU is also in the midst of a five-game winning streak.
Holmes poured in 27 points, setting a career-best with 13 made field goals. She added five steals, four assists and a block in 38 minutes. The New Haven, Connecticut native has now scored 25 or more points in four contests.
For the third time this season, Fields reached the 20-point plateau with 20 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals.
“We came out a little slow in the first half and stood around,” said coach Mike Carey. “We were just shooting jump shots and weren’t attacking, and they came out attacking. I think I took a timeout there and said some nice things. I encouraged them to start playing harder. We came out and went on a 10-0 run. Those are things we have to do.”
Center Lanay Montgomery added eight points, five rebounds and five blocks. The Pittsburgh native has recorded five swats in three consecutive games, joining WVU Hall of Famer Georgeann Wells as the only Mountaineers to achieve that feat.
West Virginia keyed in defensively in the second half, allowing one Duquesne three-pointer. April Robinson, who knocked down four triples in the opening half, was limited to no points primarily thanks to the play of guard Linda Stepney. The Norfolk, Virginia native concluded the night with eight points, six rebounds and five assists. Robinson finished with a team-high 14 points for the Dukes.
Overall, West Virginia shot 46.9 percent (30-of-64) from the field on the evening with 16 points from the charity stripe. Duquesne was limited to 16-of-50 (32 percent), making five triples. Defensively, WVU reeled in 12 steals and blocked nine shots in the victory.
WVU opened the contest with an 8-2 lead, four of those points coming from the hands of Holmes. Duquesne then battled back with a 9-2 run taking an 11-10 lead at the 12:25 mark.
Holmes answered with three consecutive layups to put the Mountaineers back in command. A bucket and plus-one by Duquesne’s Tyra Jones cut WVU’s edge to 20-15 with less than eight minutes left.
The Mountaineers closed out the first half reaching 40 points for the second straight game and taking a 40-32 lead at the break. Holmes led all scorers with 19 points, while Montgomery followed with eight points.
WVU shot a season-best 52.9 percent (18-of-34) from the field in the first half. Duquesne was limited to 10-of-27 overall (37 percent), while knocking down four treys. West Virginia forced 12 Dukes turnovers that resulted in 16 points in the opening stanza.
Duquesne started the second half on a four-point run. A layup from Deva’Nyar Workman cut Duquesne’s deficit to 46-40 with 15:38 remaining in the second half.
Just near the 12-minute mark, Bre McDonald hit her first triple as a Mountaineer to extend West Virginia’s edge to 54-45. WVU used a 10-0 run to take its largest lead of the game, 61-45, at 9:33.
From that point forward, the Mountaineers never looked back, taking a 21-point lead down the stretch. The victory was the 37th for West Virginia over Duquesne.
The Mountaineers return to action on Saturday, Dec. 13 in a 4 p.m. contest against IPFW (4-5) inside the WVU Coliseum. The WVU Drumline will perform at halftime and there will also be an ugly sweater contest.
NOTES
Bria Holmes posted her 12th straight game in double figures dating back to last season and the 39 double-digit scoring game of her career … Holmes recorded her sixth game this season with 20 points or more and the 14th of her career … Holmes set a career high in field goals made with 13 … Holmes’ 13 made field goals are tied for the fourth-most all time at the WVU Coliseum … Holmes scored 25 points or more for the fourth time this season … West Virginia connected on 18-of-34 (52.9%) field goal attempts in the first half, marking a season high for field goal percentage in the first half … Record at home 5-0 … West Virginia has won 14 consecutive home games … Lanay Montgomery has recorded at least five blocks in a game in three straight games. She is the first WVU player since Georgeann Wells in 1986 to accomplish this feat in at least three straight games … After forcing 26 Duquesne turnovers, the Mountaineers have forced 20 turnovers or more in three of their last four games … West Virginia registered double-digit team steals in the fourth straight game.
Gold-Blue Spring Festival Fan Recap
Sunday, April 19
John Neider | April 18
Saturday, April 18
Coach Zac Alley | April 18
Saturday, April 18
Coach Rich Rodriguez | April 18
Saturday, April 18
