Box Score AMES, Iowa – The West Virginia University women's basketball suffered a 70-50 defeat to No. 11/11 Iowa State on Wednesday evening, inside Hilton Coliseum in Ames.
 
The Mountaineers' (9-4, 0-2 Big 12) scoring efforts were led by sophomore guard JJ Quinerly, who tallied a team-best 16 points to go along with four rebounds, three assists and two steals. Redshirt sophomore guard Kyah Watson would join her in double figures, with 12 points. Watson also paced WVU on the glass, with seven rebounds.
 
Iowa State (10-2, 2-0 Big 12) was led by three double-digit scorers, including Ashley Joens, who finished the game with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
 
After a 6-0 Iowa State run forced a Mountaineer timeout in the game's opening minute, West Virginia ripped off an 8-0 run out of the break, which gave it the lead. The two teams then traded hands with the lead until the Cyclones strung together a 6-0 run to jump out to a 15-11 lead. A 3-pointer by Watson got WVU within one point with one minute remaining in the first period.
 
Each team would add a score from there, as Iowa State held a 17-16 lead over West Virginia after the first quarter.
 
WVU regained the lead to begin the second frame, as it got off to a 5-0 run and took a 21-17 advantage over ISU. The two teams then jockeyed for the lead over the next few minutes and were tied at 25-25 with six minutes remaining in the first half. Smith sank a triple before the midway point of the second quarter, where the Mountaineers led the Cyclones, 28-27.
 
West Virginia and Iowa State would continue to the back-and-forth affair following the media timeout and were tied, 37-37, at halftime.
 
The first half featured six ties and 11 lead changes. What's more, each team led by no more than six points across the first two quarters. In the first half, WVU held the lead for 8:30, while ISU did so for 8:48.
 
West Virginia netted a pair of scores to begin the second half, which helped it regain the lead. However, Iowa State netted a pair of 3's to counter. From there, the Cyclones closed out the third quarter on a 14-0 run to take a 57-41 lead over the Mountaineers at the end of the frame.
 
WVU would fall behind by 20 over the first five minutes of the fourth quarter and trailed ISU, 63-43, at the final media break. In the final minutes of the game, the two teams went back and forth, each netting seven points, but West Virginia would fall in the matchup.
 
Next up, West Virginia remains on the road and travels to Manhattan, Kansas, on Saturday, Jan. 7, to take on Kansas State. Tipoff against the Wildcats is set for 2 p.m. ET, inside Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan.