The Mountaineers overcame a 13-point deficit and rallied past BYU. Sydney Woodley led the way off the bench with 23 points. WVU’s bench outscored BYU’s 32-24 and helped overcome a slow start. WVU moves to 17-4 overall and 7-2 in the Big 12 and remains perfect on the road at 6-0. WVU travels to Salt Lake City to play the Utah Utes on January 27 at nine p.m. EST. Read more: WVU overcomes early deficit to win at BYU.
First quarter
WVU scored the first three points of the game, but it did not continue. BYU rattled off nine consecutive points, including three-pointers from Sydney Benally and Delaney Gibb. Kierra Wheeler scored to give her four points in the quarter and brought WVU within four. BYU continued to stay hot, scoring the following six points to make it 15-5 with five minutes remaining in the quarter.
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The largest lead for BYU in the matchup came after a basket from Bolanle Yussuf at 20-7. Gia Cooke immediately answered with a three-pointer, which kick-started a run. Jordan Harrison made a layup, and Sydney Woodley’s free throws, which were a theme all night, brought WVU within 6. Riley Makalusky made a basket after a Gia Cooke to make it 20-16. The Cougars took a five-point lead into the second quarter on a Yussuf free throw.
Second quarter
Cooke scored five quick points with a three-pointer and a couple of free throws before the seven-minute mark. Benally answered a McCray layup with a three-pointer, which gave them a 32-26 lead. Woodley made two consecutive field goals to provide WVU with a 33-32 lead with 4 minutes remaining in the first half.
Carter McCray scored four points, grabbed three rebounds, and had one assist and one block in the final four minutes of the half. Woodley and McCray led the way in the second quarter. Woodley finished with eight points in the quarter, making two with one minute remaining to give WVU a 39-37 lead. McCray scored the final basket of the half off an assist from Cooke, giving WVU a three-point lead into the break.
At the break
Cooke and Woodley both had 10 points in the first half, while McCray chipped in seven. She also had seven rebounds, which led the team at halftime. They finished the half with six steals and scored 14 points off turnovers. That was the difference in how they overcame the 13-point deficit.
Benally had eight points for BYU, while Yussuf and Olivia Hamlin had six points off the bench. They had 12 turnovers, five more than WVU. The Cougars shot seven of 10 (70%) from three and kept it close despite their turnovers.
Third quarter
Sydney Shaw matched a Gibb three out of the half, and WVU took control of the game. WVU scored eight consecutive points, with a Harrison steal-and-score and a Cooke three. Gibb slowed WVU’s run with a jump shot, but Wheeler answered quickly with a basket. WVU went up 55-43 after another Wheeler layup.
Gibb tried to will the Cougars back into the game with six points over the final two and a half minutes. Cooke hit a three-pointer with a minute remaining, but the Cougars scored the final two baskets of the third quarter. BYU trailed 62-55 entering the fourth quarter.
Fourth quarter
The bench started the final quarter with four consecutive points for WVU. Makalusky scored a layup to open the quarter, and Woodley scored a layup after a steal. McCray followed those with two baskets of her own, and gave WVU a 13-point lead.
Woodley got to the free-throw line with over six minutes remaining and both free throws. She returned with five minutes remaining, followed by two made free throws from Jordan Harrison. Those two free throws gave WVU its largest lead of the game. Woodley and Cooke finished the game at the charity stripe, where WVU lived all quarter. They won the game 91-77.
Top performers
- S. Woodley (WVU): 23 points/1 rebound/1 assists/4 steal
- G. Cooke (WVU): 21 points/4 assists/3 steals
- D. Gibb (BYU): 28 points/2 rebounds/2 assists/1 steal
What’s next?
WVU returns to action on January 27 against Utah in Salt Lake City. They return home on February 1 to play Baylor at Hope Coliseum.
All Mountaineer basketball games are broadcast across the John Fredericks Media Network. The game will air on 100.9 FM The Torch and its nine affiliate stations.
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