TCU

West Virginia’s big second quarter trumps TCU’s strong finish

TCU guard AJ Alix was hounded by West Virginia’s Teana Muldrow, left, and Anja Martin when the teams played in Fort Worth on Dec. 29. West Virginia won in December and won Wednesday night to sweep the season series.
TCU guard AJ Alix was hounded by West Virginia’s Teana Muldrow, left, and Anja Martin when the teams played in Fort Worth on Dec. 29. West Virginia won in December and won Wednesday night to sweep the season series. rrodriguez@star-telegram.com

Tynice Martin and Teana Muldrow combined for 50 points and 22 rebounds as West Virginia held off TCU’s frantic finish for a 77-73 victory Wednesday night in a Big 12 Conference women’s basketball game.

TCU (12-15, 4-12 Big 12) started well, using an 11-2 run in the first quarter to grab a 16-14 lead. But West Virginia (19-9, 7-9) exploded for 29 points in the second quarter and carried a comfortable 43-35 lead at halftime.

TCU, down by as many as 14 points late in the third quarter, made a game of it by starting the final period with an 11-1 run to get within 60-58 with 6:03 to play.

But Martin hit a 3-pointer to quickly squash TCU’s momentum and start a 7-0 Mountaineer run that swelled the lead back to 67-58. Martin finished with 25 points.

TCU couldn’t climb back to within one possession until AJ Alix nailed her third 3-pointer with 26 seconds to play to make it 74-71. But West Virginia made 3 of 4 free throws after that to close out the game.

Alix led TCU with 21 points, five assists and four steals. Jada Butts added 18 points, including six in the final three minutes. TCU forced a season-high 22 turnovers by West Virginia.

TCU

16

19

12

26

73

West Virginia

14

29

16

18

77

TCU (12-15)—Moore 2-3 0-2 4, Alix 9-15 0-0 21, Butts 5-12 7-7 18, Ray 0-5 1-4 1, Thompson 2-7 2-2 7, Akomolafe 1-1 0-0 2, Coleman 0-0 0-0 0, Hellessey 0-0 0-0 0, Okonkwo 4-8 3-4 11, Willie 0-0 0-0 0, Rainey 0-1 0-0 0, Ramirez 4-11 1-1 9, Totals 27-63 14-20 73.

West Virginia (19-9)—Muldrow 7-11 9-10 25, Montgomery 2-2 1-2 5, Martin 10-21 3-4 25, Pardee 1-6 4-4 6, Ray 1-10 2-2 5, King 2-5 0-0 4, Rhodes 0-0 0-0 0, Brewer 1-4 0-0 3, Martin 2-3 0-0 4, Totals 26-62 19-22 77.

3-Point Goals—TCU 5-23 (Alix 3-6, Butts 1-3, Ray 0-3, Thompson 1-3, Okonkwo 0-1, Rainey 0-1, Ramirez 0-6), West Virginia 6-19 (Muldrow 2-2, Martin 2-6, Pardee 0-3, Ray 1-6, Brewer 1-2). Assists—TCU 8 (Alix 5), West Virginia 21 (Ray 8). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—TCU 26 (Okonkwo 9), West Virginia 49 (Muldrow 14). Total Fouls—TCU 19, West Virginia 18. A—2,147.

BIG 12 WOMEN’S STANDINGS

Conference

Overall

Team

Rec.

Pct.

Rec.

Pct.

Baylor

15-1

.938

26-2

.929

Texas

14-2

.875

21-6

.778

Oklahoma

12-4

.750

21-7

.750

Kansas State

10-6

.625

20-8

.714

West Virginia

7-9

.438

19-9

.679

Iowa State

7-9

.438

16-11

.593

Oklahoma State

5-11

.313

15-12

.556

TCU

4-12

.250

12-15

.444

Texas Tech

4-12

.250

12-15

.444

Kansas

2-14

.125

8-19

.296

This story was originally published February 22, 2017 at 10:09 PM with the headline "West Virginia’s big second quarter trumps TCU’s strong finish."

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