Box Score COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The West Virginia University women's basketball team (19-12) dropped the opening game in the round of 64 at the 2023 NCAA Tournament to the Arizona Wildcats, 62-75, on Friday afternoon, at the XFINITY Center in College Park, Maryland.
 
Sophomore guard JJ Quinerly led the way for the Mountaineers scoring 19, while redshirt sophomore guard Kyah Watson followed behind with 15.
 
After Arizona scored the game's first points, WVU found itself down 4-11 at the first media timeout roughly halfway through the first quarter. Senior guard Jayla Hemingway led the way for the Mountaineers in the opening quarter finishing with eight points. WVU trailed by nine after the first quarter against the Wildcats, 17-28.
 
Fifth-year senior guard Madisen Smith knocked down two free throws to open second quarter play. Quinerly finished the 10 minutes with five points, Smith added four, while Watson, fifth-year senior guard Dani Nichols and redshirt sophomore forward Isis Beh scored two each and Hemingway added one, respectively. The Mountaineers led the quarter, 16-12, to enter halftime trailing by seven, 33-40.
 
Hemingway scored the first bucket to open the second half of play in College Park. Watson added two free throws to close the gap, 37-40, early in the third quarter. Quinerly led the Mountaineers through the third, scoring 12 of the 18 points, to make the score 51-61 heading into the fourth quarter.
 
The Mountaineers were off to a slow start in the final quarter, allowing the Wildcats to score six in the opening two minutes, before calling the first media timeout of the quarter. Watson ended the scoreless quarter at 6:36 with her first three-pointer of the game, just before Smith scored her first three-pointer, making the score 57-68. The Wildcats answered quickly scoring seven in a row to extend the lead by 14. Watson scored the final basket of the day for Mountaineers and drew a foul, to make the final score 62-75.
 
Of note, Madisen Smith finishes her career with 4,615 minutes of play, which is the most in program history. She adds 137 starts and 142 games played which is the second most all-time and just one game shy of tying the program record.
 
With the loss, WVU moves to 11-14 all-time in NCAA Tournament play.
 
The Mountaineers ended the 2023 season with an overall record of 19-12 and a 10-8 record in Big 12 play.