On today’s docket, we have three Top 25 NCAAW matches and, as a bonus, one Euroleague quarterfinal game. So, from Kansas to Istanbul, let’s go.
No. 22 West Virginia rolled into Manhattan to face No. 10 Kansas State and proceeded to give the Wildcats something of an eye-opening first quarter. In a very low-scoring affair, the Mountaineers jumped out to a 13-5 lead, with Kansas State shooting 2-10 and one free throw, plus 10 of their 23 turnovers. While both teams were still struggling to get the ball in the hoop in the second quarter, things slowly began to pick up, and Kansas State got a little more in sync, holding WVU to only eleven points and scoring 19 to tie the game at the half, 24-24.
West Virginia, not wanting to be outdone, took the third quarter 17-11. KSU turned the ball over four times but shot only 4-11, and WVU went up 41-35 at the end of the quarter. Within the first few minutes of the fourth, KSU managed to tie the game at 44 all on a Jaelyn Glenn three-pointer. From that point, the seesaw entered the game, and back and forth they went to an eventual 58-58 tie at the end of regulation.
West Virginia and Kansas State needed OT in this NCAAW matchup
In overtime, KSU went up 64-62 on a pair of Ayoka Lee free throws at the 2:59 mark, and from there, the Wildcats outscored WVU 9-2 for the win. Kansas State shot a pretty miserable 19-31 from the free throw line, turned the ball over 23 times, but only committed nine fouls to WVU’s 24, and outscored the Mountaineers 42-22 in the paint. WVU had 18 turnovers, so to say this was a sloppy game might be an understatement.
Even though KSU shot 47.2% and WVU shot 35.2%, this wasn’t a win in which to take a lot of pride. Next up for KSU is in-state rival Kansas, and WVU welcomes No. 24 Baylor. Hopefully, it will be a well-designed drawing board that each team can create and take care of the problems from this game. For the Mountaineers, only JJ Quinerly was in double figures with 23 points. For the Wildcats, Lee scored 34 with 12 boards, and Serena Sundell scored 11. Draw your own conclusions.
Texas survived in a close win over Texas Tech in NCAAW action
No. 5 Texas saw Texas Tech give them a handful, and while the Longhorns won their seventh straight game, it was not without a fight. The first quarter was a feisty back and forth, and TTU managed to keep pace with Texas and trailed only by one after the first quarter. Texas jumped, or should I say skipped to a 34-28 lead at the 0:41 mark when TTU then came as close as three, but a Texas free throw ended the quarter with the Longhorns up by four.
It’s still anyone’s game. After a few minutes and a few free throws, Texas went up 38-31 at 8:26, but then someone turned off the jets, and Texas didn’t score again until Amina Muhammad made a layup at 5:18. TTU added four points in the interim, and then two more to make it 40-37 Texas. TTU had an oh-so-brief lead at 0:35 on a Kelly Mora three, to which Shay Holle responded for Texas, giving them a 52-50 edge after the third quarter.
The fourth quarter was a see-saw battle between both teams
The fourth saw more back and forth, with Texas extending their lead to eleven at the 2:21 mark. TTU fought back, getting as close as three with nine seconds left, but a costly foul on Bailey Maupin sent Madison Booker to the line for Texas, and that sealed the deal. I can only imagine Vic Schaefer’s assistants being on high cork-popping alert for this one. Props to TTU for a very hard-fought game.
Jasmine Shavers led the Mountaineers with 27 points, Bailey Maupin bagged 22, and Jada Wynn scored 10. Texas was led by Taylor Jones with 19 points and 6 boards, Amina Muhammad with 16 points and 15 boards, Madison Booker with 14 points, and Deyona Gaston with 12 off the bench. Texas travels to UCF next, and TTU welcomes in Cincinnati.
Baylor gets the victory over Kansas in BIG 12 NCAAW play
In another close match, No. 24 Baylor fought off Kansas 69-61. The score was only 5-0 KU at the 7:23 mark when Baylor finally put up some points. Both teams struggled, with Baylor only up by one, 16-15 at the quarter’s end. Baylor slowly began to pad their lead, extending it to nine at the half, 35-26. While KU got as close as two in the third quarter, Baylor continued to hold them off, maintaining their nine-point lead into the final frame.
KU pushed, trying to overtake Baylor, but the Bears held on, and even though KU took the fourth by one, it just wasn’t enough, and Baylor crawled away with the win. For the Jayhawks, S’Mya Nichols scored 23, Zakiah Franklin 15, and Yvette Mayberry 10. The KU bench scored a perfect goose egg. Dre’una Edwards led the Bears off the bench with 20 points followed by Jana Van Gytenbeek with 11. The only starter in doubles was Darianna Littlepage-Buggs with 10 points and 9 boards.
Something is amiss with both teams and come tournament time, they will need to be addressed.
And now for something completely different…but still basketball
And finally, today’s bonus highlight is yesterday’s Euroleague Quarterfinal matchup between Turkish powerhouse Fenerbaçhe and Spain’s Perfumerias Avenida. Fenerbaçhe was the odds-on favorite going into this match. However, they were without Emma Meesseman, which proved costly. Avenida obviously had other ideas. They jumped out to a lead and held it until the 3:17 mark when Kayla McBride hit a three and finally put Fenerbaçhe up 20-18.
Shooting went rather cold until a combined effort, led by McBride and Napheesa Collier brought Fenerbaçhe up to a 30-24 lead after the first quarter. There was more of the same in the second quarter until Avenida took the lead 42-41 on an Arica Carter layup, which was immediately erased by a McBride trey, and by the end of the half, Fenerbaçhe had increased their lead to 53-44. The third quarter saw Fenerbaçhe extend their margin another four points.
McBride led the way for Fenerbahçe in the win
Then, at the 4:51 mark, Avenida made the push, and by the 1:30 mark had brought the game to within three points. Timeout Fenerbahçe. Then, Napheesa Collier and Yvonne Anderson each made shots, and Fenerbaçhe held off Avenida, winning by a score of 98-91, much to the relief of the home crowd and of course to head coach Valérie Garnier. For Fenerbahçe, Kayla McBride led with 27 points and eight assists, Yvonne Anderson with 22 points, seven boards, and seven assists, Napheesa Collier with 21 points, nine boards, and five assists, and Nikolina Milic, with 15 points and five boards.
Avenida was led by Alexis Prince with 22 points, followed by Andrea Vilaro with 21, Leonor Rodriguez with 17, and Arica Carter with 10. All these games are available on the FIBA YouTube channel, free of charge. There are way too many commercial interruptions which often come at the most inopportune times, but they’re still worth watching. I highly recommend it if you’re around. Otherwise, you can always watch the replays.
And that, my friends, as they say, is that.’ — Martin Ruben.
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