West Virginia women’s basketball’s debut in the Big 12 Tournament wasn’t easy. The Mountaineers went down to the wire with the talk of the tournament so far, Arizona State. The Sun Devils upset No. 7-seeded Iowa State on March 5.

What turned into a defensive effort, WVU halted a late surge from Arizona State, knocking down some big 3-pointers, to win the quarterfinal matchup 67-54, advancing to the semifinals the next day. The Mountaineers play the winner of No. 3-seeded Baylor and No. 6-seeded Colorado. WVU secured its 25th victory for the third-straight year – a first in program history.

“I’m proud of the group,” head coach Mark Kellogg said. “I think sometimes the first one is the hardest one to get, especially when you’re playing an opponent that’s playing as well as Arizona State has. They have a couple of games under their belt, they’re comfortable.”

Just two minutes in the fourth quarter, with WVU’s offense slowing down, the Sun Devils’ guard Marley Washenitz hit a 3-pointer, making it 52-50. Kellogg called a timeout.

Out of the timeout, Sydney Shaw drained a much-needed 3-pointer. WVU was up 55-50. Then, guard Gia Cooke hit one, and Shaw hit another from deep. Just like that, after both teams didn’t score for three minutes, WVU was up 63-50.

Shaw had a big day from behind the arc. She made five 3-pointers and led the Mountaineers with 19 points. Shaw tied the WVU Big 12 Tournament record for 3-pointers in a game.

“I think before the game, he made an emphasis on just being ourselves,” Shaw said. “And in those moments when it got close and we really needed shots, we really settled in and just played our game.”

But a lot of credit has to go to guard Jordan Harrison. Harrison created space, drew a lot of attention and freed up shooting lanes for Shaw. Harrison did it all for WVU and led the defense in the low-scoring second half. Just a few days prior, Harrison was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, and she showed the title against Arizona State. Harrison had three steals and five assists.

WVU relied on the turnovers to create offense. The Mountaineers didn’t force too many, with 16, but they dominated Arizona State in scoring points off them. WVU had 35 points off turnovers. The Mountaineers’ defense also held the Sun Devils to 37.5% on the floor, while their offense shot 43.9%.

“Yeah, it starts with defense, of course,” Cooke said. “Our press, you know, controls everything for us, so, you know, getting stops and us pushing in transition is really our game. We got a lot of quick guards. We got a great paint presence. So I think we have it from all positions, really.”

The defense had to clamp down, while the offense struggled early in the fourth. The offense did box out on the offensive glass. There were a lot of big offensive rebounds late in the game, which helped drain the clock. The Mountaineers had 13, which was crucial up a couple with the clock winding down.

Arizona State made WVU work for the win, though. The Sun Devils came out swinging and briefly took the lead in the first quarter, leading 17-16 with a minute left. The Sun Devils looked like they were working their Cinderella magic for a second. But WVU was still in striking distance.

In the middle of the second quarter, the Mountaineers asserted their dominance, draining 3-pointers. Shaw started the run with a 3-pointer, then Riley Makalusky hit one on the next possession. Shaw drained another for an 11-0 run. WVU was quickly up 34-21.

At the end of the half, WVU made six of 10 3-pointers. The Mountaineers make just over six a game on the year. WVU missed a couple in the third quarter, depleting the accuracy, but Shaw and Cooke had two big ones at the end of the game. WVU made nine 3-pointers at 37.5% a clip. Cooke made three for 16 points.

WVU’s offense showed that second-quarter spark at the end of the game. The Mountaineers made four of their last five shots to close out the game.

WVU’s matchup with either Baylor or Colorado is set for March 7 at 5:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.

“Happy for our group that you continue to play,” Kellogg said. “That’s really it. Doesn’t really matter if you play great. You’re just trying to find ways to win this time of year and play the next day. And fortunately for us, we’ll play again tomorrow.”