FORT WORTH, Texas – West Virginia University redshirt sophomore forward Messiah Hunter banked a 3-pointer off the glass in the final minutes of the WVU Women’s Basketball Team’s 77-52 victory over TCU on Tuesday night at Schollmaier Arena.
It was that kind of night for the No. 24 Mountaineers (21-3, 10-3 Big 12), who bounced back from Saturday’s loss at Baylor with a resounding victory. They shot 48.5% from the field against the last-place Horned Frogs (15-9, 2-11).
“We had two goals going into the game – to have 17 or more assists and to have four players score in double figures,” WVU first-year head coach Mark Kellogg said.
The Mountaineers accomplished both. They finished with 18 assists.
Sophomore guard Jordan Harrison scored a game-high 19 points and six rebounds. Junior guard JJ Quinerly added 15 points and now has scored in double figures in 23 of the Mountaineers’ 24 games this season.
Redshirt junior guard Kyah Watson finished with 13 points and eight rebounds, and graduate guard Jayla Hemingway added 12 points and four assists.
WVU led 15-14 at the end of the first quarter and extended that lead to 60-33 by the end of the third.
“It was a solid win for us – it took us a while to get going,” Kellogg said. “We quickly got the spark that we needed.”
TCU, which has a new head coach in Mark Campbell, went undefeated in non-conference play, but endured so many injuries that they were forced to forfeit two Big 12 games. They held open tryouts to fill out the roster.
WVU improved to 22-5 all-time in the series, including 9-3 in Fort Worth. The Horned Frogs haven’t won in the series since 2020, the only year that they swept the season series. The teams will meet again on March 2 in Morgantown.
Tuesday also marked the first win at TCU for Kellogg, who previously coached at Stephen F. Austin, in East Texas, and West Texas A&M, in the Texas Panhandle.
Kellogg grew up in Richardson, Texas – approximately 40 miles east of Fort Worth.
“I had a lot of family and friends attend the game,” Kellogg said. “I’ve spent a lot of time on the TCU campus, since my brother played soccer here.”
Kellogg sported pink shoes in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness. The Mountaineers will host a “Pink Game” of its own when they host Big 12 leader Oklahoma at 1 p.m. Saturday.
“It is always special to honor our survivors,” Kellogg said. “I will wear pink shoes again on Saturday.”
WVU is tied with Texas for third place in the Big 12, and the next three games will go a long way in determining whether the Mountaineers can challenge for their second Big 12 title, and first since 2014.
“We knew this would be the gauntlet,” said Kellogg, who will follow the OU game with a trip to second-place Kansas State and a rematch with fourth-place Baylor.
WVU improved to 6-2 on the road this season. They’ve won six of their 10 Big 12 games by 20 points or more.
Tuesday was also a homecoming for graduate guard Tavy Diggs, who transferred to TCU from WVU. Diggs, who didn’t score but had four rebounds and a steal, grew up about 50 miles east of Fort Worth in Plano, Texas.
— Story by BY MICHAEL SUDHALTER/For The Dominion Post
