WVU’s offense shot just 27 percent in the opening quarter, as Iowa State took a 14-10 lead after one period. Senior Bria Holmes scored eight of WVU’s 16 second quarter points to give the Mountaineers a 26-21 lead at halftime. The Cyclones used a 10-0 run late in the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth quarter to take a two-point lead.

 

Senior Arielle Roberson nailed a three-pointer to give WVU a 42-41 edge with 6:13 remaining. ISU tied the game, 45-45, at the 3:46 mark with a Meredith Burkhall jumper. Center Lanay Montgomery scored the next five points down the stretch to give West Virginia a five-point lead. Iowa State narrowed the game to three points, but was unable to capitalize, as the Mountaineers picked up their 10th victory at home for the 11th time in 15 seasons under Mike Carey.

 

Holmes paced West Virginia (19-6, 8-4 Big 12) with a game-high 23 points and made 8-of-8 from the charity stripe. Montgomery registered her sixth double-double of the season with 15 points and 15 rebounds. The Pittsburgh native made 6-of-8 from the field and blocked three shots in 33 minutes. Roberson corralled a season-high 17 rebounds. Her nine offensive boards were the most since Montgomery grabbed nine against Morehead State on Dec. 2, 2015. Iowa State fell to 12-11 overall and 4-8 in Big 12 action.

 

“I thought that Arielle, Lanay and Bria played extremely hard,” said Carey. “We just couldn’t get anything going for anybody else. We were shooting air balls, shooting short and we were not aggressive inside. I give them credit because they carried us through this victory. They did a great job.”

 

Offensively, West Virginia shot 33.9 percent (19-of-56) from the field and held Iowa State to 24.6 percent shooting (15-of-61). The Mountaineers won the rebound battle, 51-33, and outscored the Cyclones 31-16 in the paint. WVU connected on 17-of-20 from the free throw line for 85.0 percent. West Virginia dished out 10 assists, as freshman Tynice Martin had a team-best three on the evening.

 

The Mountaineer offense started off slow in the first quarter as the team shot 26.7 percent. WVU opened a 6-2 lead, but the Cyclones completed a 9-0 run to take a five-point edge. Buckets from Montgomery and Jessica Morton trimmed the game to 11-10. However, a Jadda Buckley trey ended the frame to put ISU up 14-10.

 

In the second quarter, West Virginia improved its shooting to nearly 40 percent. Holmes netted eight of WVU’s 16 second quarter points, as the Mountaineers held Iowa State to seven points and took a 26-21 lead into the locker room. The Mountaineers finished the first half shooting 33.3 percent (11-of-33) from the field, while Iowa State was limited to 21.4 percent (6-of-28). WVU outrebounded the Cyclones, 27-17, in the opening half.

 

Iowa State’s Seanna Johnson’s trey to open the third quarter trimmed the WVU lead to 26-24. Johnson led Iowa State with 19 points on the night. West Virginia proceeded on an 8-2 run to stretch its lead to eight with 5:32 remaining.  Over the next two minutes, the Cyclones used a seven-point run of their own to cut the game to 34-31. Holmes made a layup and a three-pointer to push the game to 39-33 at the end of three.

 

Consecutive field goals from Johnson and a Burkhall layup tied the game for Iowa State at 39-39 with 7:30 remaining in the contest. Johnson’s free throws gave ISU a two-point advantage. Roberson nailed a three-pointer to put the Mountaineers back up by one. Chania Ray made a free throw on her first of two, but WVU rebounded and Montgomery made a layup to put the team up by four.

 

ISU’s Burkhall hit a jumper to tie the game at 45-45, but Montgomery scored the next five points to give WVU the go-ahead lead. Wednesday’s win secured WVU’s 10th victory at home and eighth win in Big 12 action.

 

The Mountaineers open the first of three games against ranked opponents on Saturday, Feb. 13, in a 6 p.m. ET/5 p.m. CT showdown with No. 20 Oklahoma State in Stillwater.

 

NOTES: With the win, West Virginia now holds a 6-2 edge over Iowa State in the all-time series … West Virginia also reached the 10-win mark at home for the 11th time in 15 season under coach Mike Carey … West Virginia is just one win away from securing its 10th 20-win season under the direction of coach Carey … the Mountaineers are 14-1 when scoring the first points of the game … WVU is now 19-2 when leading at halftime … West Virginia is 18-4 this season when holding its opponents to less than 69 points … with 51 rebounds on the night, WVU is now 17-1 when outrebounding its opponent … WVU is 19-4 this season when outscoring the opponent’s bench  … WVU has distributed double-figure assists in 22 of 25 games this season … the Mountaineers have recorded five or more blocks in 24 of 25 games played this season … 21 of WVU’s 25 opponents have shot 38.6 percent or less from the field … senior Arielle Roberson has grabbed five or more rebounds in the last 17 games, as she netted a season-high 17 rebounds over the Cyclones  … senior Bria Holmes has produced 92 games scoring in double-figures, and has tied Donna Abbot for third all-time … Holmes also has registered double-figure scoring in 24 consecutive games, as she scored a team-high 23 points against the Cyclones … junior Lanay Montgomery recorded her ninth double-double of her career and sixth of the 2015-16 season … Montgomery has 11 games this season with 10 or more rebounds … Montgomery also recorded three blocks on the night, as her 70 blocks now list third all-time on WVU’s junior single-season list … she is four away from passing Asya Bussie for second ... WVU honored longtime custodial staff member Rick Sloan in the third quarter, as he retired and completed his final game on Wednesday.