2024-25 Women's Basketball Season Preview
November 01, 2024 04:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The West Virginia University women's basketball team returned to the court on Tuesday, Sept. 24, for its first official practice of the 2024-25 season. Second-year coach Mark Kellogg's squad features eight student-athletes from last year's team, including four of five starters, and six newcomers.
Quinerly's Senior Season
Senior guard JJ Quinerly thrust herself onto the national scene last season, playing her way into a host of national honors and nominations.
Quinerly's breakout junior campaign produced an AP/WBCA Honorable Mention honor. She has played in 94 contests across her first three seasons at West Virginia, including 76 starts. The Norfolk, Virginia, native has amassed 1,364 points, 312 rebounds, 238 assists and 231 steals during the span.
Her points scored rank 21st in the program's history and is on pace to finish her career inside the top five all-time. Additionally, her steals rank eighth.
The Norfolk, Virginia native has scored in double-figures 67 times and led West Virginia in scoring 40 times. What's more, 31 of those double-digit games came during the 2023-24 season, which also saw Quinerly score 20 or more points 16 times, finishing the season with a 19.8 points-per-game average. She added three 30-point scoring performances last season, tied for the fourth most all-time in a single season.
Quinerly's performance last season landed her All-Big 12 conference honors. She was named the conference's defensive player of the year and a selection to the All-Big 12 First Team and Defensive Team for the second consecutive season.
She carried a stat line of 19.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.9 steals per game. Her steal led the conference while her points were second.
Quinerly has earned early preseason recognition, being named to the Naismith Trophy Women's College Player of the Year and the Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year watchlists. She was also a unanimous first-team selection on this year's Preseason All-Big 12 Team.
Nation's Most Dynamic Backcourt
Jordan Harrison joins Quinerly to make one of the nation's premier backcourts. Like Quinerly, Harrison was named to a national preseason watchlist after being selected one of twenty for the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year.
Last season, Harrison quickly settled into the power five level and played her way onto the Big 12 Defensive Team and All-Big 12 Second Team.
She played in and started all 33 games with a team-leading 1,055 minutes, averaging 32.0 minutes per game. She finished with 96 steals, the second most on the team and in the Big 12.
The Oklahoma City, Oklahoma native managed a team-leading 173 assists, and a 1.8 A/TO ratio which was the fifth-best in the Big 12. Her 5.2 assists per game were the second-best in the Big 12. She averaged 13.5 points per game, the second most for WVU last season.
Four of Five Starters Return
This season will feature some familiar faces, with four of five starters from a season ago set to return to the court for the 2024-25 season. Seniors Kylee Blacksten and Kyah Watson, join Quinerly and Harrison in returning this season, as the quartet were the primary starters on an NCAA Tournament team a season ago.
Collectively, the group has appeared in 375 games while making 309 starts. The quartet all started all 33 games a season ago.
Watson averaged 30.2 minutes per game while adding a career-high 8.0 points per game. She averaged a team-leading 6.4 rebounds per game and added 78 steals.
The native of Rapid City, South Dakota has played in 107 career games while making 102 starts.
Blacksten begins her third season with the Mountaineers. Last season, Blacksten averaged 6.1 points per game while shooting 43.6 percent from the floor. For her career, Blacksten has played in 107 contests and made 64 starts.
Thievery
The Mountaineers became one of the best defenses in the nation a season ago, due in large part to an aggressive and relentless full-court pressure. The tactic resulted in turnovers and easy transition buckets.
This season looks to be more of the same for the Mountaineers as WVU returns the top trio in the nation in steals. Quinerly (97), Harrison (98) and Watson (78) combined for 271 steals last season, the most from any returning three in the nation. Quinerly produced the 10th, Harrison the 11th and Watson the 29th most steals among all returners.
The pack will also get stronger this season after adding Sydney Woodley from Long Beach State. Woodley collected 104 steals a season ago which is the third-highest mark among returners.
Last season, the Mountaineers finished with the best turnover margin in the country at +8.67. They added 23.6 turnovers forced and 13.6 steals per game which were the most from a power five program.
More on the Returners
Senior Tirzah Moore and Danelle Arigbabu also return for West Virginia this season.
Moore played in 21 contests last season after transferring to WVU from Oral Roberts. She averaged 14 minutes per game, scoring 4.8 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. She shot the ball at 51.5 percent from the floor.
Arigbabu enters her second season in the program after transferring from Northeastern Oklahoma. Last year, the Berlin, Germany native played in 27 games while averaging 10.9 minutes per contest. She produced a 57.9 field goal percentage, the highest on the team, and averaged 1.0 points and 2.0 rebounds per game.
Two Return from Injury
Senior Zya Nugent and Junior Ashala Moseberry both suffered season-ending injuries last season. The pair both look to make their first appearance in the Gold and Blue this season.
Nugent transferred from Stephen F. Austin where she played the last three seasons under Kellogg. There she averaged 11.4 points across three seasons while playing in 87 contests. She helped guide the Ladyjacks to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. During her junior season in 2021-22, the guard averaged a career-best 12.9 points, 2.5 assists and 5.1 rebounds.
Moseberry played at South Plains Community College for two seasons before transferring to West Virginia.
New Kids on the Block
Coach Mark Kellogg and his staff brought in six newcomers to finalize the 2024-25 WVU women's basketball roster including one senior, two juniors and three freshmen.
Woodley comes to WVU from Long Beach State. Last season, she played in and started all 31 games, logging 921 minutes played. The Menifee, California native held a 45.1% field-goal percentage last season, scoring 335 points and averaging 10.8 per game. She notched an impressive 104 steals which was the eighth most in the NCAA.
Junior Sydney Shaw is a transfer from Auburn. Last season, she played in all 32 games while making 18 starts. She averaged 6.6 points, 2.5 rebounds, 0.9 assists, and 0.8 steals while playing 21.5 minutes per game. Shaw was Auburn's second-leading 3-point shooter, knocking down 33 attempts and scoring in double-figures eight times.
Junior Célia Rivière is another transfer, coming to WVU from NW Florida State. She has played in 65 collegiate games with two seasons of eligibility left.
Three freshmen also joined the WVU roster this season. The trio of Destiny Agubata, Jordan Thomas and Feryal Defne Atli were highly sought-after recruits.
Agubata was rated as a four-star prospect by ESPN, she is a member of the ESPN HoopGirlz Top 100 for the class of 2024, ranked No. 78 in the nation. Thomas was rated just behind as a four-star player ranked No. 79 in the nation.
Atli, a Mersin, Turkiye native, holds a host of international experience after representing the Turkey National Team at international championships. She was the youngest and only 17-year-old to be selected to Turkey's 2024 U20 national team roster.
West Virginia officially begins its second season under Coach Kellogg on Tuesday, Nov. 5, against Towson at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown. The Mountaineers open Big 12 Conference play on Saturday, Dec. 21, when they hit the road to take on Colorado at the CU Events Center.
Quinerly's Senior Season
Senior guard JJ Quinerly thrust herself onto the national scene last season, playing her way into a host of national honors and nominations.
Quinerly's breakout junior campaign produced an AP/WBCA Honorable Mention honor. She has played in 94 contests across her first three seasons at West Virginia, including 76 starts. The Norfolk, Virginia, native has amassed 1,364 points, 312 rebounds, 238 assists and 231 steals during the span.
Her points scored rank 21st in the program's history and is on pace to finish her career inside the top five all-time. Additionally, her steals rank eighth.
The Norfolk, Virginia native has scored in double-figures 67 times and led West Virginia in scoring 40 times. What's more, 31 of those double-digit games came during the 2023-24 season, which also saw Quinerly score 20 or more points 16 times, finishing the season with a 19.8 points-per-game average. She added three 30-point scoring performances last season, tied for the fourth most all-time in a single season.
Quinerly's performance last season landed her All-Big 12 conference honors. She was named the conference's defensive player of the year and a selection to the All-Big 12 First Team and Defensive Team for the second consecutive season.
She carried a stat line of 19.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.9 steals per game. Her steal led the conference while her points were second.
Quinerly has earned early preseason recognition, being named to the Naismith Trophy Women's College Player of the Year and the Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year watchlists. She was also a unanimous first-team selection on this year's Preseason All-Big 12 Team.
Nation's Most Dynamic Backcourt
Jordan Harrison joins Quinerly to make one of the nation's premier backcourts. Like Quinerly, Harrison was named to a national preseason watchlist after being selected one of twenty for the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year.
Last season, Harrison quickly settled into the power five level and played her way onto the Big 12 Defensive Team and All-Big 12 Second Team.
She played in and started all 33 games with a team-leading 1,055 minutes, averaging 32.0 minutes per game. She finished with 96 steals, the second most on the team and in the Big 12.
The Oklahoma City, Oklahoma native managed a team-leading 173 assists, and a 1.8 A/TO ratio which was the fifth-best in the Big 12. Her 5.2 assists per game were the second-best in the Big 12. She averaged 13.5 points per game, the second most for WVU last season.
Four of Five Starters Return
This season will feature some familiar faces, with four of five starters from a season ago set to return to the court for the 2024-25 season. Seniors Kylee Blacksten and Kyah Watson, join Quinerly and Harrison in returning this season, as the quartet were the primary starters on an NCAA Tournament team a season ago.
Collectively, the group has appeared in 375 games while making 309 starts. The quartet all started all 33 games a season ago.
Watson averaged 30.2 minutes per game while adding a career-high 8.0 points per game. She averaged a team-leading 6.4 rebounds per game and added 78 steals.
The native of Rapid City, South Dakota has played in 107 career games while making 102 starts.
Blacksten begins her third season with the Mountaineers. Last season, Blacksten averaged 6.1 points per game while shooting 43.6 percent from the floor. For her career, Blacksten has played in 107 contests and made 64 starts.
Thievery
The Mountaineers became one of the best defenses in the nation a season ago, due in large part to an aggressive and relentless full-court pressure. The tactic resulted in turnovers and easy transition buckets.
This season looks to be more of the same for the Mountaineers as WVU returns the top trio in the nation in steals. Quinerly (97), Harrison (98) and Watson (78) combined for 271 steals last season, the most from any returning three in the nation. Quinerly produced the 10th, Harrison the 11th and Watson the 29th most steals among all returners.
The pack will also get stronger this season after adding Sydney Woodley from Long Beach State. Woodley collected 104 steals a season ago which is the third-highest mark among returners.
Last season, the Mountaineers finished with the best turnover margin in the country at +8.67. They added 23.6 turnovers forced and 13.6 steals per game which were the most from a power five program.
More on the Returners
Senior Tirzah Moore and Danelle Arigbabu also return for West Virginia this season.
Moore played in 21 contests last season after transferring to WVU from Oral Roberts. She averaged 14 minutes per game, scoring 4.8 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. She shot the ball at 51.5 percent from the floor.
Arigbabu enters her second season in the program after transferring from Northeastern Oklahoma. Last year, the Berlin, Germany native played in 27 games while averaging 10.9 minutes per contest. She produced a 57.9 field goal percentage, the highest on the team, and averaged 1.0 points and 2.0 rebounds per game.
Two Return from Injury
Senior Zya Nugent and Junior Ashala Moseberry both suffered season-ending injuries last season. The pair both look to make their first appearance in the Gold and Blue this season.
Nugent transferred from Stephen F. Austin where she played the last three seasons under Kellogg. There she averaged 11.4 points across three seasons while playing in 87 contests. She helped guide the Ladyjacks to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. During her junior season in 2021-22, the guard averaged a career-best 12.9 points, 2.5 assists and 5.1 rebounds.
Moseberry played at South Plains Community College for two seasons before transferring to West Virginia.
New Kids on the Block
Coach Mark Kellogg and his staff brought in six newcomers to finalize the 2024-25 WVU women's basketball roster including one senior, two juniors and three freshmen.
Woodley comes to WVU from Long Beach State. Last season, she played in and started all 31 games, logging 921 minutes played. The Menifee, California native held a 45.1% field-goal percentage last season, scoring 335 points and averaging 10.8 per game. She notched an impressive 104 steals which was the eighth most in the NCAA.
Junior Sydney Shaw is a transfer from Auburn. Last season, she played in all 32 games while making 18 starts. She averaged 6.6 points, 2.5 rebounds, 0.9 assists, and 0.8 steals while playing 21.5 minutes per game. Shaw was Auburn's second-leading 3-point shooter, knocking down 33 attempts and scoring in double-figures eight times.
Junior Célia Rivière is another transfer, coming to WVU from NW Florida State. She has played in 65 collegiate games with two seasons of eligibility left.
Three freshmen also joined the WVU roster this season. The trio of Destiny Agubata, Jordan Thomas and Feryal Defne Atli were highly sought-after recruits.
Agubata was rated as a four-star prospect by ESPN, she is a member of the ESPN HoopGirlz Top 100 for the class of 2024, ranked No. 78 in the nation. Thomas was rated just behind as a four-star player ranked No. 79 in the nation.
Atli, a Mersin, Turkiye native, holds a host of international experience after representing the Turkey National Team at international championships. She was the youngest and only 17-year-old to be selected to Turkey's 2024 U20 national team roster.
West Virginia officially begins its second season under Coach Kellogg on Tuesday, Nov. 5, against Towson at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown. The Mountaineers open Big 12 Conference play on Saturday, Dec. 21, when they hit the road to take on Colorado at the CU Events Center.
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