West Virginia Falls Just Short of Kentucky

Monday, March 23

Morgantown, W.Va.

5 P.M.

West Virginia University

28-7,14-4Big 12

Kentucky

25-10,8-8SEC

Kentucky

West Virginia

March 23, 2026 08:53 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Chris Coombs

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 4-seeded West Virginia women's basketball team fell to No. 5-seed Kentucky 74-73 on Monday night in the NCAA Second Round inside Hope Coliseum.

West Virginia placed four players in double figures, led by Gia Cooke and Sydney Shaw, who scored 23 points apiece to lead the Mountaineers. Cooke finished 5 of 13 from the field and converted 11 of 12 free throws, while Shaw hit six 3-pointers and added four steals.

Kierra Wheeler went 8 of 11 shooting for 16 points, and Jordan Harrison added 11 points, four assists and four steals. West Virginia shot 41.7% from the floor, went 9 of 19 from long range and made 14 of 16 free throws but was outrebounded 39-23.

The Mountaineers knocked down two triples, the first from Cooke, followed by a Shaw three-pointer to open the game. Shaw was fouled on the play and converted at the line to push the lead to 7-3. Kentucky surged offensively, outscoring WVU 11-2 to the media timeout, where they trailed 14-9. Over the final four minutes, the Mountaineers pulled within one point twice before trailing the Wildcats 20-15.

Kentucky extended its lead out to as many as 11 points midway through the second. Wheeler went to work in the paint, scoring six of the Mountaineers' eight points across four possessions to pull WVU within five at the 4:39 mark. Shaw spashed her second three of the contest moments later and then collected a steal and fast break layup to level the score at 30. West Virginia and Kentucky traded baskets the rest of the way to a level 36-36 score at halftime.

Cooke finished the half with a leading 13 points as Wheeler added 10 points and four rebounds. Shaw had nine after making two from beyond the arc.

Kentucky scored the opening 13 of 15 points of the second half to take a 49-38 lead. Shaw knocked down her third triple of the evening to cut the WVU lead back to single digits just before the media timeout. Kentucky would extend its lead out to as many as 14 points before taking a 62-50 lead into the final frame.

Shaw sparked the Mountaineers in the fourth with back-to-back threes after a Wheeler opening layup. Harrison then scored in transition to pull the Mountaineers within four points, capping off a 10-2 run to open the final frame. Kentucky extended its lead back out to eight before a Cooke three saw the Mountaineers trail 68-63 with just under five minutes to play.

Shaw connected on a mid-range jumper and on the next possession knocked down her sixth three of the game, pulling WVU within one possession of tying the game at 72-69. Harrison managed a steal with 1:20 to play and was fouled on the ensuing drive, knocking down both attempts to pull within one.

Kentucky's Tonie Morgan pushed the lead out to three on a foul line jumper before Cooke cashed in on two at the charity stripe. Cooke created her own space in the lane and narrowly missed her midrange jumper in the waning moments of the contest as the Mountaineers suffered a one-point loss.

The Mountaineers finish the season with a 28-7 overall record to mark the third-most wins in a season in program history. West Virginia collected the program's second Big 12 Conference Tournament Championship while collecting 14 conference wins this season, marking the third straight season WVU has reached 12+ wins in league play.

West Virginia has now won at least one game in the NCAA Tournament in three consecutive years. The mark is tied for the longest such streak, doing so from 2010-12. The fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament is the second-longest streak in program history, behind only five from 2010-14.