MORGANTOWN òòò½ÊÓƵ” The West Virginia womenòòò½ÊÓƵ™s basketball team is about to see a step up in competition.
The Mountaineers have made it through their nonconference schedule and are set to open Big 12 Conference play Saturday with a 2 p.m. game against Oklahoma at the òòò½ÊÓƵU Coliseum.
òòò½ÊÓƵœIòòò½ÊÓƵ™m excited to get going,òòò½ÊÓƵ òòò½ÊÓƵU fifth-year point guard Madisen Smith said. òòò½ÊÓƵœI think itòòò½ÊÓƵ™s going to be a great year for us. We have girls that can really play hard on defense and offense òòò½ÊÓƵ” starters and off the bench. I think we have a really good team this year and Iòòò½ÊÓƵ™m excited to get going.òòò½ÊÓƵ
òòò½ÊÓƵU is one of seven teams in the 10-team league currently with two or fewer losses this season after making their way through nonconference play with a 9-2 mark òòò½ÊÓƵ” the Mountaineersòòò½ÊÓƵ™ two losses came against NC State and at Penn State.
The loss to the Lady Lions was followed with a resilient 49-45 victory over Georgia in the West Palm Beach Invitational and an 82-51 victory over Miami (Ohio) the following day. Those two games in south Florida were the only two contests the team has had since the loss to Penn State on Dec. 11.
òòò½ÊÓƵœI thought we did a really good job of competing when we were down in Florida,òòò½ÊÓƵ òòò½ÊÓƵU head coach Dawn Plitzuweit said. òòò½ÊÓƵœCertainly the Georgia game was a game where I thought we played hard and I thought we finished plays at a very, very high level in that game, and thatòòò½ÊÓƵ™s something that weòòò½ÊÓƵ™ve seen in other games during stretches, and that was a game that we saw it for longer stretches of the game and that was really good.òòò½ÊÓƵ
The Mountaineers have the fourth-best scoring defense in the nation and best in the Big 12 at 50.3 points allowed per game òòò½ÊÓƵ” òòò½ÊÓƵU is the only Big 12 team in the top 25 in the category. òòò½ÊÓƵUòòò½ÊÓƵ™s opponents are shooting just 35.3% from the field and turn it over an average of 22.9 times per game.
Thatòòò½ÊÓƵ™ll be tested moving forward.
òòò½ÊÓƵœDefinitely, weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re ready,òòò½ÊÓƵ Smith said.
The Big 12 features four teams in the AP top 25 òòò½ÊÓƵ” Iowa State is No. 15, Oklahoma is No. 20, Kansas is No. 22 and Baylor is No. 23. Texas is also in the receiving votes category, and while not ranked, Texas Tech has the best overall record in the league at 12-1.
In the NET rankings, eight of the 10 teams in the league are in the top 75 òòò½ÊÓƵ” òòò½ÊÓƵU is 75th, while Texas Tech is just behind at 77th and TCU is No. 139. Iowa State has the best NET ranking in the league at No. 13, and Texas, Baylor, Kansas, Oklahoma State and Kansas State are all in the top 50.
While defense has been a strength through nonconference play, òòò½ÊÓƵU will see more potent offenses moving forward.
Half of the league is in the top 50 nationally in scoring, and the Mountaineersòòò½ÊÓƵ™ first league opponent òòò½ÊÓƵ” Oklahoma òòò½ÊÓƵ” is the top scoring team in the Big 12 and sixth nationally. The Sooners average 87.5 points per game.
Iowa State was picked in the Big 12 preseason poll to win the league and received four first place votes. Texas, the defending champion, was second and also received four first place votes, while Oklahoma and Baylor were third and fourth, respectively, and each received a first place vote. òòò½ÊÓƵU was picked eighth in the poll.
òòò½ÊÓƵU will follow its 2 p.m. game Saturday against Oklahoma with road trips to Iowa State on Wednesday and at Kansas State the following Saturday.
