MORGANTOWN. W.Va.
– Looking to rebound from its first loss of the season, the No. 12/11 West Virginia women's basketball team returns to Morgantown to host Kansas State in its Big 12 home opener on Wednesday. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. ET.
The first 1,000 fans at the game will receive a free mini replica Big 12 Championship banner. Tickets are available for $5 for general admission and $3 for youths/seniors and groups of 10 or more. Students receive free admission with a valid WVU ID.
Tony Caridi and Meg Bulger will call the game with Amanda Mazey as the sideline reporter for local Nexstar affiliates, and a free live stream will be offered at WVUsports.com.
Dan Zangrilli and
Ayana Dunning will have the call for the Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG. Fans can listen on Jack-FM 100.9 in the Morgantown/Fairmont area, as well as WVUsports.com, the WVU Gameday app, the TuneIn Radio App and various affiliates across the state.
The Mountaineers dropped to No. 12 in the AP Poll released Monday and to No. 11 in the latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches rankings, released on Tuesday. They suffered their first loss of the season at No. 8 Texas, 79-58, on Sunday. Junior guard
Naomi Davenport again led the squad with 20 points, while senior forward
Teana Muldrow had 15 points and a career-high six blocks.
"We physically got beat up," WVU coach
Mike Carey said. "We got outhustled, outcoached and out-everything. I kept warning these young players it was coming; it was coming. Well, reality hit them right in the face the other night."
The loss ended a 13-game win streak for the Mountaineers. However, West Virginia is currently on an 11-game home win streak that dates back to last season. The Mountaineers last home loss came at the hands of Iowa State on Feb. 4, 2017.
Wednesday marks the 12th meeting between West Virginia and Kansas State, with WVU leading the series 9-2. All 11 meetings have come as part of Big 12 play, with the series dating back to Jan. 12, 2013. The Mountaineers have never lost to the Wildcats at home, boasting a perfect 5-0 record. The two have met once at a neutral site, with WVU claiming a 74-65 win at Chesapeake Energy Arena in the 2016 Big 12 Tournament.
The Wildcats ranked at No. 24 in the most recent meeting, which came on Feb. 15, 2017. Then-unranked WVU upset KSU for a 66-59 win. Guards
Chania Ray and
Katrina Pardee each had 14 points to lead the scoring. Ray also notched 10 assists for a double-double.
West Virginia has been ranked in the top 25 for four of the previous 11 meetings. The Mountaineer won three of four of those contests. The Wildcats upset No. 12 WVU, 86-71, in Manhattan on Jan. 1, 2017. K-State was ranked just once, coming in at No. 24 on Feb. 15, 2017.
Kansas State enters the tilt with an 8-5 overall mark and an 0-2 record in conference play. The Wildcats have lost three straight, including back-to-back Big 12 games against No. 6 Baylor (88-58) and No. 24 Oklahoma State (76-68). Junior guard Kayla Goth leads the team and the Big 12 with 6.4 assists per game and also leads the Wildcats and ranks fifth in the league with 17.0 points per game, one of just seven guards in NCAA Division I to average 15.0 or more points and 6.0 or more assists per game. Senior forward Shaelyn Martin boasts a team-best 7.8 rebounds per game. Sophomore forward Peyton Williams and freshman guard Rachel Ranke average in double-figure scoring as well at 12.5 and 12.2 points per game, respectively. K-State is averaging 69.8 points and 35.4 rebounds per game while shooting 42.8 percent from the field and 32.4 percent on 3-pointers.
WVU will remain in Morgantown to host Iowa State on Sunday in a 2 p.m. tilt on AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh.
