Shanna Rose I WV Sports
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Behind a dominant defensive effort and a balanced scoring attack, No. 4 West Virginia cruised past No. 13 Miami (Ohio) 82-54 on Saturday afternoon at a sold-out WVU Coliseum in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Sydney Shaw led the way with 19 points and nine rebounds, while Gia Cooke added 18 for the Mountaineers (28-6). Jordan Harrison finished with 15 points and eight assists, and Kierra “Meme” Wheeler chipped in 14 points and nine rebounds as four WVU players reached double figures.
The Mountaineers shot 51 percent from the field and 50 percent from 3-point range, while the RedHawks shot 39 percent from the floor and 35 percent from deep.
Miami (28-7) controlled the tempo in the first quarter, using an 8-0 run fueled by back-to-back threes from Amber Tretter and Núria Jurjo to take a 14-11 lead. But that’s when WVU flipped a switch and the Mountaineers closed the quarter on an 11-0 run.
Fueled by their signature press defense, WVU forced 15 turnovers and turned them into 21 points, disrupting the RedHawks’ rhythm. The Mountaineers also dominated inside, outscoring Miami 48-24 in the paint and out rebounding Miami, 40-24.
WVU continued to separate itself in the second quarter and carried a 40-26 lead into halftime before putting the game out of reach in the third. The Mountaineers led by as many as 36 points in the second half on their way to the largest margin of victory in an NCAA Tournament game in program history.
Amber Scalia led the RedHawks with 14 points, while Tretter added 13 and Ilse de Vries finished with 12.
With the win, WVU advances to the second round for the third straight season and will face No. 5 Kentucky on Monday with a trip to the Sweet 16 on the line. Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.
Photo Credit: WVU Athletics
