MORGANTOWN, W.Va.  – The No. 18-ranked West Virginia University women's basketball team collected its third straight Big 12 Conference win, defeating Houston 79-51 inside the Fertitta Center in Houston on Saturday afternoon.
 
The win is the Mountaineers' third straight in conference play and highlights another defensive masterclass. WVU held Houston to just 51 points in the contest, marking the third straight game West Virginia has held an opponent to less than the mark.
 
West Virginia forced Houston into 26 turnovers in the game, marking the 10^th time in conference play WVU has forced an opponent into 20 or more. The Mountaineers also found a rhythm on the offensive end, hitting 51.6% of its attempts from the floor, which is a season-high in a conference game. The 32 made field goals are also a season-high mark in conference play.
 
Four Mountaineers finished in double-figures, led by senior guard JJ Quinerly with 20 points. It marks the ninth time this season Quinerly has finished with 20+ points and the 12^th time she has led WVU in scoring. The Norfolk, Virginia native added a game-high six assists, four rebounds and three steals to her stat line.
 
Senior guard Kyah Watson scored 12 points and added eight rebounds and five steals. Junior guard Jordan Harrison finished with 14 points and junior guard Sydney Shaw added 13 points.
 
At halftime three Mountaineers had scored all WVU's points with Quinerly 18 leading the way. Harrison added 12 and Watson managed seven. The trio finished the opening 20 minutes a combined 15-of-25 from the floor. The effort pushed the Mountaineers to a 37-18 advantage at the midway point.
 
WVU limited Houston to just four points in the opening frame, not allowing a Cougar basket until nearly nine minutes had ticked away. Quinerly did the bulk of her scoring in the opening period, scoring 16 of her points during the span.
 
Out of the break, WVU outscored Houston 24-13 to pull away even more. Shaw scored 13 of her points in the frame, helping WVU build its lead to as many as 33 points. The Mountaineers pushed its lead to as many as 34 points in the fourth quarter before settling for a 28-point road win.
 
Quinerly's 20 points in the game has her firmly at No. 6 on the all-time scoring list with 1,783. Quinerly now looks to break into the top five, needing 1,819 to catch Teana Muldrow (2014-18). She is 3rd in steals with 306.
 
West Virginia is now 5-0 all-time against Houston, including a 2-0 mark when playing on the road inside the Fertitta Center.
 
West Virginia closes out its Texas road swing on Tuesday, Feb. 11, when they take on Baylor inside Foster Pavilion. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.