MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Already struggling with depth issues, WVU women’s basketball head coach Mike Carey said Tuesday two more players put their names in the transfer portal.
Abby Ogle, in her first season with the program after transferring in from Hutchinson Community College, played in just five games this year and only played 1.8 minutes in those contests.
A bigger blow could be Ariel Cummings, another post player and the second the Mountaineers have lost in the last week. Rochelle Norris left the program prior to last week’s game at Texas Tech.
Kirsten “KK Dean was out with an illness and returned recently, and Jayla Hemingway is out at least another five weeks with a knee injury.
With all the personnel problems, winning certainly hasn’t been a concern for WVU. The Mountaineers (13-2, 7-2 Big 12) won eight straight and will look to continue their winning ways Wednesday against Iowa State (11-6, 7-3) at the WVU Coliseum.
“If you look at our rotation, we still have our whole rotation still here,” Carey said. “It’s always tough at this time of the year. We have our rotation — the rotation is what it is, and I feel very good about it.”
Kysre Gondrezick is coming off a 30-point performance against TCU last Saturday and was named the Big 12 Player of the Week. She is the conference’s second-leading scorer and will go head-to-head with the top scorer in the league in the Cyclones’ Ashley Joens.
Joens is averaging 24.5 points per game and also leads ISU in rebounds (8.9) and steals (1.24).
“Ashley Joens is a great players — she can score at all three levels just like Kysre can, so she’s a tough matchup because of that,” Carey said. “She draws a lot of fouls. She’ll get into you and draw a foul on you, even if you have her covered very well. We have to be smart about that and we have to move our feet once we get her stopped.”
Versatility on the Cyclones’ offense is what has Carey concerns as all five starters have the ability to shoot the ball from the perimeter, which can also allow drives through the lane with the center sucked into the outside shot.
Iowa State is coming off an 85-77 loss to Baylor on Jan. 31. Prior to Sunday’s loss, the Cyclones won three of their last four games, including a 75-71 win over the Bears on Jan. 16. ISU currently ranks No. 4 in the Big 12 standings.
Outside of Joens, other Cyclones to look out for are guard Emily Ryan, who’s ISU’s team leader in assists, at 5.94 per game, while forward/center Kristin Scott leads the Cyclones in blocks at 1.5 per game.
Tipoff is schedule for 7 p.m. and it will be streamed on ESPN+, and for the first time this season, fans are allowed at the Coliseum. Fans are asked to purchase tickets in advance at wvugame.com or calling 1-800-WVU GAME to avoid lines at the gate on game day. When purchasing online, tickets are $5 each. At the ticket window on game day, any remaining tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth and seniors. The discounted online pricing will be available until tipoff.
Mountaineers debut in coaches poll
The Mountaineers made their season debut at No. 24 in the USA Today Coaches Poll, announced Tuesday.
The Mountaineers received 79 points to make its first appearance in the poll this season. West Virginia is ranked behind No. 23 Missouri State and in front of No. 25 Georgia. WVU was last ranked in the Coaches Poll on Jan. 14, 2020, when it checked in at No. 18.
West Virginia is one of two Big 12 teams featured in this week’s poll. Baylor (12-2, 7-1 Big 12) received 574 points and ranks No. 8 this week.
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