WVU Drops Eagles, Remains Unbeaten

Thursday, December 21

Morgantown, W.Va.

7:00 p.m.

West Virginia University

12-0

Morehead State

9-4

Morehead State

West Virginia

Photo by: MG Ellis

December 21, 2017 09:54 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score Season Stats Postgame Quotes

By: Ashley Bailey

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 9/9 West Virginia University women's basketball team closed out nonconference play in victorious fashion, taking down visiting Morehead State, 66-56, on Thursday night at the WVU Coliseum.

The Mountaineers never trailed and featured four players in double figures, including a team-high 19 points from junior forward Naomi Davenport. Senior forward Teana Muldrow added 18 points and 12 rebounds, recording her sixth double-double of the season.

With the win, WVU finished the nonconference portion of the schedule unbeaten for the second consecutive season and third time since 2011. The team also secured its 39th straight nonconference win at home.

"(It was a) sloppy game," WVU coach Mike Carey said. "I'm just glad that nonconference is over. I'm glad to start playing Big 12 games. We need to move forward."

West Virginia (12-0) tallied the first six points of the game, as senior guard Chania Ray, Davenport and Muldrow each scored early buckets. Later on, Muldrow sank a 3-pointer from the top of the key to put the Mountaineers up 14-10 at the 4:16 mark of the opening frame.

In all, WVU notched assists on seven of its eight first-quarter baskets and forced six turnovers on the defensive end. Still, the Mountaineers' lead was just four at 18-14 after 10 minutes.

After WVU began the second quarter with a layup by Ray and jumper by junior guard Katrina Pardee, Morehead State (9-4) went on a mini 6-0 run to tie the game at 22. From there, though, Davenport quickly responded with a pair of baskets, allowing the Mountaineers to retake control.

The Cincinnati, Ohio, native also registered a steal-and-score at the 5:26 mark before the half to extend the lead to 32-24.

WVU made eight of nine field goals for a spurt in the quarter, while holding the Eagles without a field goal for over four minutes at one point. That helped allow the Mountaineers to take ta 42-33 advantage into the locker room. Muldrow led the way with 13 points at the half, while Davenport added 12 more.

The Mountaineers stormed out of the gate to begin the second half, scoring the first 10 points of the third quarter. Davenport continued her strong performance, swishing a 3-pointer before getting a put-back to go to make it 52-33, WVU's largest lead of the contest. Morehead State, meanwhile, didn't score until almost four minutes into the second half.

Along with Davenport's 19 points, she added nine rebounds, five steals and four assists in the win. Pardee added 12 points, while Ray chipped in 11 more.

Later on in the third, Pardee sank a pair of 3-pointers, the second of which bumped the Mountaineer advantage to 14 with 1:42 to play in the quarter. WVU led, 58-44, heading into the fourth period of play.

From there, WVU's shooting cooled as the team made just two field goals in the final frame. Morehead State was even able to cut the lead to single-digits at 65-56 with 56 seconds to play, but it wasn't enough to halt the Mountaineers from finishing unblemished during their nonconference slate.

WVU shot 25 of 53 (47.2%) from the field, including four from beyond the arc. The Mountaineers also earned 10 steals as a team. The Eagles, who were led by Darianne Seward's game-high 23 points, shot 22 of 66 (33.3%) as a team.

The Mountaineers will be back action to begin Big 12 Conference play when the team travels to TCU on Dec. 28. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.

Notes: With Thursday night's win over Morehead State, the Mountaineers moved to 3-0 all-time against the Eagles, with all three games being played in Morgantown … the win also improves the Mountaineers to 10-3 all-time against the Ohio Valley Conference … with the nonconference season now complete, West Virginia has won 39 straight nonconference games inside the WVU Coliseum … the win marks the 11th undefeated nonconference season at home under Mike Carey … it's also the second consecutive season WVU has gone unbeaten during nonconference play … Teana Muldrow recorded her 233rd career offensive rebound four minutes and 15 seconds into the game, moving her into the program's top-10 all-time in the category; she finished with three offensive boards on the night … Muldrow also recorded her sixth double-double of the season and 16th of her career, scoring 18 points and adding 12 rebounds … a Mountaineer has recorded a double-double in nine of 12 games this season … Muldrow has made 19 straight free throws, dating back to Dec. 3 at Texas A&M … Naomi Davenport tied a career high in steals with five.