Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks
Mountaineers Travel to Texas A&M
December 02, 2017 01:17 PM | Women's Basketball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – With a six-game win streak on the line, the No. 11/12 West Virginia women's basketball team travels to College Station, Texas, for its biggest nonconference test of the season as the Mountaineers are set to take on No. 18/21 Texas A&M on Sunday as part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. ET inside Reed Arena.
The tilt between the Mountaineers (6-0) and the Aggies (6-1) will be carried by ESPNU with Cara Capuano and Christy Thomaskutty on the call.
Dan Zangrilli and Ayana Dunning will have the radio call on Jack-FM:100.9 in Morgantown/Fairmont for the Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG. Fans can listen to various affiliates across the state, WVUsports.com, the WVU Gameday app and online at TuneIn.
Sunday marks the second all-time meeting between WVU and TAMU. The two previously squared off on Nov. 24, 2006, in Los Angeles. The Aggies, then ranked at No. 12, claimed a 55-52 win over the Mountaineers. The two meet as part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge, a series that dates back to 2014. The 2017-18 season marks the second straight year the Mountaineers have taken part in the series, as West Virginia hosted Ole Miss in Dec. of 2016, topping the rebels 66-61.
The Aggies enter the contest on a four-game win streak with a 6-1 overall mark, ranking at No. 18 in the Associated Press Top 25 and at No. 21 in the USA Today Sports Coaches Poll. Most recently, TAMU picked up an 82-76 win over Rice. Freshman guard Chennedy Carter leads the scoring with 18.8 points per game, while Junior guard Danni Williams is a close second at 17.0 points per game. Carter also boasts a team-high 5.3 assists per game. Junior forward Anriel Howard leads the Aggies with 12.3 rebounds per game while senior center Khaalia Hillsman has tallied 10 blocks on the season. The Aggies are averaging 81.4 points per game and are shooting 45.8 percent from the field and 43.4 percent on 3-pointers.
"They're playing extremely well," WVU coach Mike Carey said. "They're winning by large numbers. They have some great inside players and some great guards. This will be a true test, especially on the road. There's no doubt in my mind they'll have a great crowd. We've got to be ready to play because they're really jumping on teams early in the first quarter and really getting big leads. We need to go down there and just play even for a while and have an opportunity to win at the end."
The Mountaineers most recently went 3-0 at Paradise Jam in Melbourne, Florida, to win the tournament's Island Division title with a 79-61 victory over Virginia Tech. Senior forward Teana Muldrow is averaging a team and league-best 23.8 points per game in addition to 9.5 rebounds per game. For her efforts in Melbourne, she was named the Island Division MVP. Senior guard Chania Ray, who is currently averaging 11.2 points and 5.8 assists pregame, joined Muldrow on the all-tournament team.
Muldrow and junior guard Tynice Martin were named to the 2017-18 Citizen Naismith Trophy Watch List on Wednesday. Martin also was announced as a candidate for the 2018 Wade Trophy.
Up next, WVU returns home to host rival Pitt on Thursday in a 7 p.m. tilt at the WVU Coliseum.
The tilt between the Mountaineers (6-0) and the Aggies (6-1) will be carried by ESPNU with Cara Capuano and Christy Thomaskutty on the call.
Dan Zangrilli and Ayana Dunning will have the radio call on Jack-FM:100.9 in Morgantown/Fairmont for the Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG. Fans can listen to various affiliates across the state, WVUsports.com, the WVU Gameday app and online at TuneIn.
Sunday marks the second all-time meeting between WVU and TAMU. The two previously squared off on Nov. 24, 2006, in Los Angeles. The Aggies, then ranked at No. 12, claimed a 55-52 win over the Mountaineers. The two meet as part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge, a series that dates back to 2014. The 2017-18 season marks the second straight year the Mountaineers have taken part in the series, as West Virginia hosted Ole Miss in Dec. of 2016, topping the rebels 66-61.
The Aggies enter the contest on a four-game win streak with a 6-1 overall mark, ranking at No. 18 in the Associated Press Top 25 and at No. 21 in the USA Today Sports Coaches Poll. Most recently, TAMU picked up an 82-76 win over Rice. Freshman guard Chennedy Carter leads the scoring with 18.8 points per game, while Junior guard Danni Williams is a close second at 17.0 points per game. Carter also boasts a team-high 5.3 assists per game. Junior forward Anriel Howard leads the Aggies with 12.3 rebounds per game while senior center Khaalia Hillsman has tallied 10 blocks on the season. The Aggies are averaging 81.4 points per game and are shooting 45.8 percent from the field and 43.4 percent on 3-pointers.
"They're playing extremely well," WVU coach Mike Carey said. "They're winning by large numbers. They have some great inside players and some great guards. This will be a true test, especially on the road. There's no doubt in my mind they'll have a great crowd. We've got to be ready to play because they're really jumping on teams early in the first quarter and really getting big leads. We need to go down there and just play even for a while and have an opportunity to win at the end."
The Mountaineers most recently went 3-0 at Paradise Jam in Melbourne, Florida, to win the tournament's Island Division title with a 79-61 victory over Virginia Tech. Senior forward Teana Muldrow is averaging a team and league-best 23.8 points per game in addition to 9.5 rebounds per game. For her efforts in Melbourne, she was named the Island Division MVP. Senior guard Chania Ray, who is currently averaging 11.2 points and 5.8 assists pregame, joined Muldrow on the all-tournament team.
Muldrow and junior guard Tynice Martin were named to the 2017-18 Citizen Naismith Trophy Watch List on Wednesday. Martin also was announced as a candidate for the 2018 Wade Trophy.
Up next, WVU returns home to host rival Pitt on Thursday in a 7 p.m. tilt at the WVU Coliseum.
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