No. 18 WBB Travels to West Virginia for Sunday Matchup on ESPNU

Sunday, January 15

Morgantown, W.Va.

2 p.m.

Baylor

West Virginia

No. 18 WBB Travels to West Virginia for Sunday Matchup on ESPNU

1/14/2023 1:14:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Baylor Game Notes

The Bears are 9-0 all-time in Morgantown

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
            Facing a physical, aggressive Oklahoma State defense that made it tough on her all night, Baylor junior guard Sarah Andrews had one her worst shooting games of the season in Wednesday's 70-65 loss.
            "They were really physical with her and held her and grabbed her and came real tight off screens," Baylor coach Nicki Collen said. "She's got to get used to that, and I thought she was a lot better in the second half."
            Andrews will see a similar defensive style when the 18^th-ranked Bears (12-4, 3-1) face West Virginia (11-4, 2-2) at 2 p.m. CST Sunday at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, W.Va.
            "I'm pretty sure (JJ) Quinerly is going to guard her, and that kid is quick and has great hands," Collen said. "So, she's going to get another dose of physical guard play on every catch. We have to be better than we were tonight.
            "When someone is that aggressive on you, just put your head down and pick up a hand-check. But if you're passive and you play with it, then you're not going to go anywhere. If people are going to play you that tight, that means put the ball on the floor and leave them in your dust."
            After hitting just 1-of-8 shots and scoring two points in the first half, Andrews bounced back to score 12 fourth-quarter points, draining a pair of 3-pointers and 6-of-6 from the line to help the Bears whittle an eight-point deficit to one with 2 ½ minutes to go. The reigning National and Big 12 Player of the Week, Andrews is second in conference-only scoring with a 21.8-point average.
            While Baylor fell 10 points below its scoring average in the loss to the Cowgirls, Collen was more disappointed with the defense giving up nine 3-pointers and 22 fourth-quarter points.
            "We were just out to lunch and made a lot of mistakes," Collen said. "That's a team that tells you what they're running by how they line up. . . . We just weren't on them. We weren't talking, we weren't focused enough that we weren't letting each other know, 'Hey, this is the action they're about to run.' We just weren't dialed-in, and that's my fault."
            Led by Andrews (15.3 ppg, 4.6 assists), the Bears have a balanced scoring attack with five double-figure scorers and two others averaging at least 8.8 points per game.
Senior forward Caitlin Bickle (11.7 ppg, 7.4 rebounds) is next, followed by Ja'Mee Asberry (11.1 ppg), Aijha Blackwell (11.0 ppg) and Jaden Owens (10.0 ppg, 6.1 assists).             Freshmen Bella Fontleroy and Darianna Littlepage-Buggs chip in with 9.4 and 8.8 points per game, respectively, while Buggs has been the best on the boards with an 8.5 average.
            "I hate to say it, but (we have to) use this as motivation," Owens said. "We don't need a loss to motivate us, but it's in the past, we can't control it. The only thing we can control is how we react to it."
            West Virginia has lost three games against ranked opponents by an average of 26.3 points, but the Mountaineers are coming off back-to-back wins over Kansas State (77-70) and TCU (77-45) and are tied for fifth in the Big 12 standings, a game out of first place.
            "Every game is going to be tough in this league," Collen said. "We just have to refocus. It's not easy to play at West Virginia. We played well there last year, but a lot of new faces for them with a new coach and players coming and going in the transfer portal."
            First-year head coach Dawn Plitzuweit was 158-36 in six seasons at South Dakota, leading the Coyotes to their first NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 appearance last year when they upset second-seeded Baylor, 61-47, in a second-round matchup at the Ferrell Center.
            "They've put two and three really good quarters against really good teams," Collen said. "Dawn does a great Job coaching defense. We're going to have to work to score early. We're going to have to make them work. We're going to have to contain their guards and keep (Kylee) Blacksten from scoring around the rim."
            Quinerly and Madisen Smith are averaging 13.0 and 12.9 points, respectively, while the 6-3 Blacksten is shooting 51.4% from the floor and averaging 6.5 points and 3.9 rebounds.
            Sunday's game will be broadcast by ESPNU, with Roy Philpott and Brooke Weisbrod calling the action.

MORGANTOWN, W.V. – The No. 18 Baylor women's basketball team looks to bounce back in the win column when it travels to take on West Virginia at the WVU Coliseum on Sunday at 2 p.m. CT.

The contest between the Bears (12-4, 3-1 Big 12) and the Mountaineers (11-4, 2-2 Big 12) airs nationally on ESPNU, and will be the second nationally-televised game for Baylor this season.

A live radio broadcast is also available for fans on the Varsity Network App and locally on 1660 AM/92.3 FM. Live in-game updates will be provided via Twitter or live stats.

LAST TIME OUT
Baylor was narrowly edged by Oklahoma State inside the Ferrell Center on Wednesday, falling 70-65. Despite the loss, the Bears shot a season-best 81.3% (13-for-16) from the free throw line, led by Sarah Andrews' perfect 6-for-6 outing at the charity stripe. The ESPN National Player and Big 12 Player of the Week continued her streak of double-digit outings and ranks second in the conference through four league games (21.8 ppg).

Ja'Mee Asberry notched a season-high 19 points to lead all Bears, while Bella Fontleroy and Jaden Owens joined Asberry and Andrews in double figures. For the third-straight outing, Caitlin Bickle finished in double-figure rebounding, tying her career high for the second-straight game with 12 boards.

NATIONALLY KNOWN
Baylor was selected as the ESPN National Team of the Week on Monday, while earning U.S. Basketball Writers Association National Team of the Week and NCAA.com Team of the Week on Tuesday. Andrews added a pair of national accolades to the mix, collecting Naismith Trophy Player of the Week honors in addition to ESPN's player of the week.

SCOUTING WEST VIRGINIA AND THE SERIES
Baylor holds an impressive 22-3 ledger in the all-time series with West Virginia and is a perfect 9-0 in Morgantown. West Virginia enters Sunday's contest with an 11-4 record and 2-2 mark in Big 12 play. Winners of their last two, the Mountaineers edged Kansas State (Jan. 7) before downing TCU, 77-45, on Tuesday.

The Mountaineers are 7-1 at home this season, suffering their only loss at the WVU Coliseum to Oklahoma, 98-77. WVU is led by Dawn Plitzuweit, who is in her first year with the program. She most recently served a six-year stint at South Dakota. On the court, the Mountaineers have two players averaging double figures in JJ Quinerly (13.0 ppg) and Madisen Smith (12.9 ppg).

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