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No. 22 WVU Rolls Past ISU for Third-Place Finish
March 01, 2016 11:29 PM | Women's Basketball
AMES, Iowa – Five players reached double-figures as the No. 22-ranked West Virginia University women’s basketball team rolled to an 82-57 victory over Iowa State on Tuesday evening at the Hilton Coliseum to conclude the regular season.
The Mountaineers (23-8, 12-6 Big 12) sprinted out to a 12-0 lead and never trailed in the contest. West Virginia drained nine three-pointers in the first half and held a 42-27 halftime advantage. Iowa State (13-16, 5-13) trimmed the game to 19 points early in the third quarter, but a barrage of three consecutive triples helped WVU push its lead back to 20. The Mountaineers finished with 13 three-pointers, matching their season-high set against Oklahoma State last Saturday.
Teana Muldrow scored 14 points, including making 4-of-5 from the three-point line. The sophomore grabbed eight rebounds in the contest. Bria Holmes finished with 13 points and a game-high eight assists. Lanay Montgomery tallied 14 points and eight rebounds. Freshmen Katrina Pardee added 14 points, while Tynice Martin contributed with 13. In the rebound column, Arielle Roberson paced the Mountaineers with 11 boards.
With the win on Tuesday, West Virginia finished third in the Big 12 Conference with a 12-6 league record. The Mountaineers earn their second-highest seed for the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship after qualifying as the No. 2-seed in 2014. No. 3-seed WVU will play No. 6-seed Kansas State in the quarterfinal round on Saturday, March 5. Tipoff is set for 9:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. CT inside the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The game will be televised locally on ROOT SPORTS Pittsburgh and regionally on FOX Sports Net.
“We we’re a step slow, that’s why we were in foul trouble,” coach Mike Carey said. “We shot the ball extremely well. They backed off us and some people hit some big shots. We did what we had to do to win. It’s good to have 12 wins in the league and finish third in a really good Big 12 Conference. We’re shooting the ball pretty well right now. Hopefully, we can continue that into the Big 12 tournament.”
For the seventh time this season, WVU shot over 50 percent from the field after connecting on 50.8 percent (30-of-59). The Mountaineers nailed 13 three-pointers, shooting a season-best 56.5 percent (13-of-23) from behind the arc. West Virginia won the rebound battle, 40-26, and outscored ISU’s bench 31-9. The Cyclones shot 35.2 percent (19-of-54) from the field. WVU dished out 20 assists compared to eight for Iowa State. Junior Seanna Johnson led ISU with 21 points and 14 rebounds.
Treys from Chania Ray and Pardee helped the Mountaineers open up to a six-point lead. WVU would go on to push its lead to 12-0 before Iowa State’s Bridget Carleton hit a trey at the 3:52 mark. WVU led 20-8 after one quarter, as the Mountaineers finished the period shooting 42.9 percent (6-of-14). Ray would finish with eight points.
Pardee’s three-pointer at the 6:52 mark in the second quarter stretched West Virginia’s lead to 19 points. However, the Cyclones charged back with a 12-2 run to cut the game to nine with less than three minutes remaining. WVU ended the half with three consecutive three-pointers to push the lead back to 42-27 at the break.
In the first half, WVU shot 46.7 percent (14-of-30) from the field and a scorching 56.3 percent (9-of-16) from behind the arc. ISU was held to 28.6 percent (8-of-28) shooting, but the Cyclones scored eight of their 19 second quarter points from the free throw line. Pardee led WVU with 12 points, while Johnson netted 13 for Iowa State.
West Virginia connected on seven of its first 10 shots in the third quarter. Martin’s jumper just under the five-minute mark gave WVU a 26-point advantage. The Cyclones trimmed the game to 20 points three different times as the quarter came to a close.
Nicole Blaskowsky’s three-pointer early in the fourth quarter cut the Mountaineer advantage to 19. Muldrow’s three-pointer midway through the period marked the fifth player to reach double-figures. West Virginia finished with 80 or more points for the third consecutive game and capped the regular season on a three-game win streak.
West Virginia finishes third in the Big 12 Conference, its second highest placement since tying for first in 2014. The Mountaineers are the No. 3-seed and play No. 6-seed Kansas State on Saturday, March 5 in the quarterfinal round of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship. Tipoff is slated for 9:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. CT at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
NOTES: Katrina Pardee matched a season-high with four three-pointers … West Virginia improved to 7-2 all-time against Iowa State and own a 3-1 record in Ames … With the win on Tuesday, WVU earned its second-highest seed in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship with a No. 3-seed … the Mountaineers shared the Big 12 regular-season title in 2014 and earned a No. 2-seed … The Mountaineers are 22-3 when scoring 60 or more points this season … WVU 20-1 when outrebounding its opponent … twenty-five of WVU’s 31 opponents have shot 38.6 percent or less from the field … WVU is 16-3 when three or more players reach double-figures … WVU had five players reach double-figures – the most this season … WVU’s hit 13 three-pointers, marking the second game in a row WVU had reached double-figure three-pointers … the 13 three-pointers are tied for second all-time in a single game … WVU reached 20 assists for the sixth time this season … WVU’s 56.5 field goal percentage is the highest since hitting 57.8 percent from behind the arc against Kansas State in 2014 … Iowa State was the fifth team WVU swept this season.
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