Sandra Kunkel, Arizona Sonoran News
The University of Arizona Wildcats were no match against one of the Big 12’s most efficient offenses on Saturday. The women’s basketball team committed 29 turnovers that snowballed a competitive start into a 68-87 loss against No. 20 West Virginia Mountaineers. WVU made 10 of its 23 3-point attempts and shot 50% from in the paint. Coach Becky Burke’s team knew ahead of Saturday’s road game to be ready for a tough challenge.
The loss comes two days after UA stunned Kansas State by 10 points at McKale Center in only its second Big 12 win. Saturday’s loss drops the ‘Cats to 2-10 in conference play.
The Wildcats opened aggressively and attacked the rim while drawing fouls and forcing six West Virginia turnovers in the first quarter and turning three of those into five early points. The Wildcats were aggressive and attacking the rim while drawing fouls, keeping the Mountaineers within arms reach despite trailing 17-20 late in the period.
Momentum began to slip away in the last 90 seconds of the first quarter as West Virginia began to show its offensive edge. Mountaineers Sydney Shaw, Gia Cooke and Jordan Harrison made deep three-pointers from all over the court.
The Mountaineers took control in the second quarter with back-to-back threes from Gia Cooke and Sydney Shaw, while Arizona’s offensive struggles and turnover issues multiplied, allowing West Virginia to capitalize for 23 points off of 15 first half Wildcat turnovers.
“You get loose for one minute against this team, it’s a 6-0 run,” Burke said in post-game remarks. “And that’s exactly what happened a couple different times.”
WVU continued to stretch their lead in the third quarter, scoring 32 points off Arizona turnovers that led directly to transition points and deep three-pointers. Kierra Wheeler led the Mountaineers with a game high 17 points.
Arizona’s top scorers Sumayah Sugapong and Noelani Cornfield only had a combined 7 points across all four quarters.
“This is a game where you got to keep the basketball tight and you got to do a really, really good job or you can get exposed. And unfortunately, she was on the other end of it today.” Burke said of Sugapong’s performance.
“When guards are bigger, and more physical than her, she usually has that quickness advantage. These guards are her height, and more athletic and quicker than she is, she just got loose with the ball a few times that hurt us,” Burke said. “That’s not the norm for her, and I think she’s gonna be haunted by this one for a while, but I think it’s gonna be a wake-up call as well for our next game, to keep it tighter and really focus and locking in on limiting her turnovers because she had a significant amount today.”
The Wildcats on Saturday looked to Daniah Trammell and Tanyuel Welch for offense. Trammell finished with 15 points while Welch finished with a team high 17 points – just two shy of her season high – including a buzzer beater three to close the third quarter with Arizona trailing 45-74.
Despite the large lead, Arizona continued to compete defensively in the fourth quarter, but finishing at the rim remained an issue. West Virginia scored 44 points in the paint and 38 points off turnovers while cycling through its entire bench late into the fourth.
Burke also acknowledged the challenge her guards faced against the Mountaineers’ size and athleticism, calling the Mountaineers “really scrappy, really active and really athletic and quick.”
She added that while the Wildcats have shown improvement protecting the ball this season, today served as a reminder for how precise teams must be against elite opponents like West Virginia, which secured its 20th win of the season over Arizona.
The Wildcats will remain on the road for a game against Cincinnati Feb. 10, and return home for a rivalry rematch against Arizona State for ESPN’s College Game Day on Saturday Feb. 14.
Arizona Sonoran News is a news service of the University of Arizona School of Journalism.
