West Virginia Opens NCAA Tournament Against Miami
March 20, 2026 08:12 AM | Women's Basketball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University women's basketball team opens play at the NCAA Tournament when they take on Miami of Ohio in the first round of March Madness on Saturday, March 21. Tipoff inside Hope Coliseum in Morgantown is set for 5 p.m. ET.
The contest against Miami will be broadcast on ESPNU with Brenda VanLengen and Anne O'Neil on the call. The game also can be heard on the Varsity Network app, with Andrew Caridi on the call. Live stats and game notes will be available on WVUsports.com.
The matchup with the RedHawks marks just the second time the two programs have met. The Mountaineers claimed the first and only meeting in 2023 by a final score of 82-51. The game was also played on a neutral floor as part of the West Palm Beach Invitational.
Head coach Mark Kellogg is the first WVU coach in program history to guide the Mountaineer women to the NCAA Tournament in three straight seasons. Kellogg will be coaching in the postseason event for the fifth time in his career. It is the Mountaineers' fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, marking the second-longest streak in program history, behind a run of five from 2010-2014
The bid is West Virginia's 17th overall bid since 1989, and its ninth since joining the Big 12 Conference in 2013. WVU is 13-16 all-time in the NCAA Tournament. As a No. 4-seed, WVU holds a 2-2 record and are 12-2 in first round games.
Kellogg's 77 wins mark the most in a three-year span for a WVU head coach during their first three seasons in Morgantown. The mark is also just one win away from matching the most wins in a three-year span. West Virginia finished with the second-best record in the Big 12 regular season at 14-4 and claimed the programs second Big 12 Conference Tournament Championship to earn its bid into the NCAA Tournament.
WVU reached 14 wins in a season for just the third time in 14 seasons. The four conference losses signify the second fewest in Big 12 play and the least since losing just two during the 2014 season.
Kellogg has never finished lower than fourth in the final Big 12 regular-season standings. West Virginia is 3-3 in Q1, 10-3 in Q2, 3-0 in Q3 and 11-0 in Q4 games.
West Virginia has four players scoring double figures this season, led by Gia Cooke with 14.7 points per game. She has scored double figures in 28 contests and has scored 20+ points in eight games. On the year she has scored 484 points and looks to become the 30th Mountaineer with 500 points in a season.
Wheeler has been a force scoring and on the glass with 13.3 points and a team-leading 7.5 rebounds. On the year, she has recorded nine double-doubles.
Senior guard Jordan Harrison (13.2) and Sydney Shaw (12.1) are also averaging double figures this season. Shaw is leading the Mountaineers in threes this season at 41.6% and is making 2.6 per game.
Harrison is the nation's premier defender after earning a spot on the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Late-Season Team. She was named the Big 12's Defensive Player of the Year and to the All-Big 12 First Team selection. Her 104 steals on the season ranked third on the programs all-time list and sits ninth nationally. She has averaged 5.2 assists and 3.2 steals per game across 32 contests this season.
The contest against Miami will be broadcast on ESPNU with Brenda VanLengen and Anne O'Neil on the call. The game also can be heard on the Varsity Network app, with Andrew Caridi on the call. Live stats and game notes will be available on WVUsports.com.
The matchup with the RedHawks marks just the second time the two programs have met. The Mountaineers claimed the first and only meeting in 2023 by a final score of 82-51. The game was also played on a neutral floor as part of the West Palm Beach Invitational.
Head coach Mark Kellogg is the first WVU coach in program history to guide the Mountaineer women to the NCAA Tournament in three straight seasons. Kellogg will be coaching in the postseason event for the fifth time in his career. It is the Mountaineers' fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, marking the second-longest streak in program history, behind a run of five from 2010-2014
The bid is West Virginia's 17th overall bid since 1989, and its ninth since joining the Big 12 Conference in 2013. WVU is 13-16 all-time in the NCAA Tournament. As a No. 4-seed, WVU holds a 2-2 record and are 12-2 in first round games.
Kellogg's 77 wins mark the most in a three-year span for a WVU head coach during their first three seasons in Morgantown. The mark is also just one win away from matching the most wins in a three-year span. West Virginia finished with the second-best record in the Big 12 regular season at 14-4 and claimed the programs second Big 12 Conference Tournament Championship to earn its bid into the NCAA Tournament.
WVU reached 14 wins in a season for just the third time in 14 seasons. The four conference losses signify the second fewest in Big 12 play and the least since losing just two during the 2014 season.
Kellogg has never finished lower than fourth in the final Big 12 regular-season standings. West Virginia is 3-3 in Q1, 10-3 in Q2, 3-0 in Q3 and 11-0 in Q4 games.
West Virginia has four players scoring double figures this season, led by Gia Cooke with 14.7 points per game. She has scored double figures in 28 contests and has scored 20+ points in eight games. On the year she has scored 484 points and looks to become the 30th Mountaineer with 500 points in a season.
Wheeler has been a force scoring and on the glass with 13.3 points and a team-leading 7.5 rebounds. On the year, she has recorded nine double-doubles.
Senior guard Jordan Harrison (13.2) and Sydney Shaw (12.1) are also averaging double figures this season. Shaw is leading the Mountaineers in threes this season at 41.6% and is making 2.6 per game.
Harrison is the nation's premier defender after earning a spot on the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Late-Season Team. She was named the Big 12's Defensive Player of the Year and to the All-Big 12 First Team selection. Her 104 steals on the season ranked third on the programs all-time list and sits ninth nationally. She has averaged 5.2 assists and 3.2 steals per game across 32 contests this season.
Players Mentioned
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