MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Junior Lanay Montgomery netted a career-high 21 points, as the West Virginia University women’s basketball team concluded non-conference play with a 67-57 victory over Elon on Monday evening at the WVU Coliseum.
The Mountaineers (11-2) opened the first quarter with a 23-11 edge. Elon (7-4) capitalized on a five-minute scoring drought in the second quarter to outscore WVU, 13-12. West Virginia picked up the pace in the second half, pushing its lead to 19 in the fourth quarter. The Phoenix fought back cutting the game to eight with 4:17 remaining, but the Mountaineers finished down the stretch to collect their ninth consecutive victory.
Since the 2013-14 season, West Virginia has won 24 straight games against non-conference competition at the Coliseum. The Mountaineers are also in the midst of a 13-game win streak at the WVU Coliseum, dating back to last season.
Montgomery bested her previous career-high of 15 set against James Madison earlier this season. Her perfect 9-of-9 from the field tied six others for WVU’s single-game field goal percentage record. The most recent was Madina Ali’s 7-of-7 against Saint Francis in Dec. 2010. Additionally, Montgomery pulled in nine rebounds and deflected two shots in the contest. The Pittsburgh native, who now has 173 career deflections, surpassed Olivia Bradley for third all-time on WVU’s blocks list.
Bria Holmes reached double-figures for the 80th time with 19 points. She grabbed seven rebounds, dished out three assists, blocked two shots and collected two steals. Teana Muldrow snatched a season-best 10 rebounds and scored seven points, while leading WVU with four assists and three steals. Freshman Alexis Brewer made a pair of three-pointers and connected on two free throws to finish the night with eight points.
“There is not enough passing and not enough dribbling,” said coach Mike Carey. “We are standing around. Again, we looked a little tired. We were in foul trouble in the first half. I had several players with two. We just looked tired. The problem is, we have to play Texas on Wednesday.”
Offensively, West Virginia netted 47.1 percent (24-of-51) overall from the field and 6-of-21 (28.6 percent) from behind the arc. The Mountaineers won the rebound battle 46-32 and dished out 12 assists. West Virginia also outscored Elon in the paint, 32-28, and cashed in a total of 19 points off turnovers.
Elon (7-4) was limited to 32.8 percent (21-of-64) shooting. The Phoenix were held to 24 first half points, before recording 15 in the third and 18 in the final period. Jenifer Rhodes led the Phoenix with a team-high 14 points.
Montgomery scored nine points in the first quarter, as the Mountaineers held a 23-11 advantage over the Phoenix. Early on, West Virginia used an 8-0 run to push its lead into double digits, before Elon’s Lauren Brown knocked down a free throw at the 3:01 minute mark to cut the deficit to nine. With under three minutes left, Brewer hit a three, followed by a pair of layups from Tynice Martin and Muldrow to close out the quarter.
West Virginia and Elon exchanged a pair of scoring droughts, as the Phoenix outscored the Mountaineers 13-12 in the second quarter. West Virginia opened the quarter on an 8-2 run, as the Phoenix closed the half on an eight-point run of their own.
Holmes nailed a triple and a free throw to take a 31-13 lead with 6:36 remaining in the first half. Elon then controlled the scoreboard, as West Virginia did not score for over four minutes, until Holmes connected on a layup with 1:32 left to play in the stanza. The Mountaineers led the Phoenix 35-24 at halftime.
West Virginia dominated the boards, 25-14, in the first half. Holmes knocked down 4-of-5 from the field and was 2-of-3 from behind the arch to lead the team with 13 points, followed by Montgomery with 11. The Phoenix’s Rhodes had a half-leading nine points.
In the third quarter, Brewer nailed a trey from behind the arch to give the Mountaineers a 40-28 advantage with 7:51 left to play in the frame. Elon’s Shay Burnett jumper cut the Phoenix’s deficit to 10 with 5:09 to go in the third. West Virginia then tallied another 7-0 run to close out the period, as WVU edged EU 54-39 to close out the stanza.
Elon came out strong in the fourth quarter, as the Phoenix outscored the Mountaineers 18-13. The Phoenix collected an 11-0 run midway through the fourth to cut its deficit to eight points for the first time all game. With 4:04 remaining in the game, Muldrow connected on a basket to push West Virginia’s lead back to 10. With under four minutes left to play, a pair of three’s from senior Arielle Roberson and Muldrow sealed the win for West Virginia, as it claimed its fourth all-time victory over Elon.
West Virginia opens Big 12 Conference play with No. 5/6 Texas on Wednesday, Dec. 30, in a 7 p.m. tipoff at the Coliseum. Admission to Wednesday’s contest is $1 courtesy of United Bank.
The annual Teddy Bear Toss will also be held after the game. Fans are invited to bring new or gently used teddy bears and other stuffed animals to toss on the court at the game. All donated items will be distributed by the City of Morgantown Police and Monongalia County Sherriff’s Office to child victims of crime and trauma.
NOTES: The Mountaineers have won 24 consecutive games against non-conference foes at the Coliseum since 2013-14 and have a 13-game win streak at the Coliseum since 2015 … Mike Carey’s teams have finished undefeated at home against non-conference opponents nine times in 15 seasons … West Virginia is 11-0 when leading at the half … Lanay Montgomery scored a career-high 21 points, passing her previous-best of 15 set vs. James Madison earlier this season … Montgomery made 9-of-9 from the field for 100.0 shooting, tying six others for a single-game record … the most recent occurred by Madina Ali against Saint Francis on Dec. 18, 2010 … Bria Holmes netted 19 points for her 80th double-figure scoring game … she is now tied with Meg Bulger for 11th all-time at WVU … Holmes is two points away from passing Liz Repella for No. 7 on WVU’s all-time scoring ledger … coach Mike Carey is four wins away from reaching his 600th career victory … WVU has reached double-figure assists in 12 of 13 games this season.
