Mountaineers Top Texas Tech

Wednesday, January 23

Morgantown, W.Va.

6:00 p.m.

West Virginia University

13-5 (4-3)

Texas Tech

10-8 (1-6)

Texas Tech

West Virginia

Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks

January 23, 2019 09:08 PM | Women's Basketball

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By: Joe Mitchin

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Redshirt junior guard Tynice Martin led all scorers with 23 points as the West Virginia University women's basketball team topped Texas Tech, 68-65, on Wednesday night at the WVU Coliseum.

Martin scored 11 points in the fourth quarter to help the Mountaineers (13-5, 4-3) come away with the back-and-forth, Big 12 Conference victory. The Atlanta, Georgia, native also finished with three rebounds and two assists.

Junior guard Lucky Rudd added 14 points and five rebounds for WVU, while senior guard/forward Naomi Davenport chipped in with 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists.

Wednesday's contest featured 12 lead changes and 10 ties.

"We were very fortunate to pull that out," said coach Mike Carey. "We had no energy. We had two or three girls, same as the men did, (with the) flu and not feeling well. (We) just didn't have any energy. Give them credit. They went right into the paint on us, and they did a nice job. They're much improved, and she (coach Marlene Stollings) does a great job with them. Give them a lot of credit."

Martin wasted no time getting on the board early, swishing a 3-pointer just 22 seconds into the contest for the game's first points. From there, Davenport matched the make from beyond the arc, giving WVU an early 8-2 lead, before freshman guard Madisen Smith drained a shot from downtown to make it 13-2.

WVU, which made five of its first seven shots from the field, scored 10 in a row at one point, forcing the Lady Raiders into an early timeout.

However, Texas Tech (10-8, 1-6) recovered, scoring 10 of the first period's final 12 points. Still, the Mountaineers led, 15-12, after 10 minutes.

In the second period, Tech was able to tie the game at 17 with 7:59 to go before halftime. Then, freshman Kari Niblack's layup and sophomore guard Nia Staples' mid-range make gave the Mountaineers a 22-19 lead at the 5:14 mark. Niblack finished with nine points and eight rebounds off the bench.

Rudd bumped the lead to 27-19 with a 3-pointer with 3:03 to go, but WVU was only able to take a 30-26 advantage into the locker room for halftime.

After Tech took an early second-half lead, Rudd drilled a 3 from the corner, just in front of the WVU bench, before Davenport scored to give the Mountaineers a 39-37 lead with 4:31 to go in the period.

Then, Martin dribbled to the elbow and made a jumper, putting West Virginia back up one, while Davenport scored on a layup to give the Mountaineers a three-point lead at 44-41 heading into the fourth.

The Lady Raiders scored nine of the first 11 points in the final frame, taking a 50-36 lead with 5:17 to go. But a pair of Rudd free throws and a 3 by Martin pushed WVU back in front at 51-50 with 4:57 to play.

A pair of big 3-pointers by Davenport and Martin gave the Mountaineers a 59-56 lead with 1:41 to go, an advantage WVU kept for good. Down eight in the closing moments of the game, Tech tried to make it interesting but could only get as close as three of the lead.

WVU finished 21-of-60 (35%) from the field, including eight 3's, and made 18 of its 24 free throws. Defensively, the Mountaineers forced 19 turnovers.

Texas Tech, which was led by Chrislyn Carr and Brittany Brewer's 19 points, shot 24-of-61 (39.3%) as a team. The Lady Raiders also outrebounded the Mountaineers, 46-37, and held a 34-14 advantage in points in the paint.

Next up, WVU welcomes Kansas State to the WVU Coliseum on Saturday, Jan. 26. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m.

Notes: West Virginia improved to 9-5 all-time against Texas Tech, including 5-2 in Morgantown … the Mountaineers have won four consecutive games over the Lady Raiders … WVU improved to 12-2 when leading at the half … redshirt junior guard Tynice Martin led the Mountaineers in scoring for the ninth time this season and 37th time in her career … Martin finished with a game-high 23 points, her 22nd career 20-point performance … WVU coach Mike Carey earned his first career win over Texas Tech coach Marlene Stollings; he now has defeated 161 different coaches in his WVU coaching career.