10:06am: Talkline with Hoppy Kercheval

Martin fuels fourth-quarter surge to edge Texas Tech

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. —  Tynice Martin’s 23 points included 11 in the fourth quarter as West Virginia rallied to edge Texas Tech 68-65 on Wednesday night in women’s basketball action.

Lucky Rudd added 14 points and five rebounds for the Mountaineers (13-5, 4-3 Big 12), while Naomi Davenport chipped in 13 points and seven rebounds.

After building a 13-2 lead early, the Mountaineers trailed 50-46 midway through the fourth quarter in a game that featured 12 lead changes and 10 ties.

“We were very fortunate to pull that out,” said West Virginia coach Mike Carey, whose roster featured several players ill with flu-like symptoms. “We had no energy.”

Texas Tech (10-8, 1-6) got 19 points from Chrislyn Carr and Brittany Brewer.

“You want to pull your hair out as a coach,” said Lady Raiders’ coach Marlene Stollings. “I hurt for them as much as anybody. Tonight, we closed the gap a little more and it was a one-possession game. We’ve been two-to-four possessions, tonight was one, and we’re on the road.

“We’re certainly not into moral victories, but we’re so close. The door’s going to open for us soon.”

After Texas Tech opened the fourth quarter with a 9-2 run to take a 50-36 lead, Rudd made two free throws and Martin hit a 3-pointer that pushed WVU back in front with 4:57 to play.

“When [Rudd] is playing, she can hit the 3 she can attack the rim. She’s very good defensively on ball defender,” Carey said. “So yeah, she’s been great for us. Lucky we have Lucky right now.”

WVU shot 35 percent from the field, made 18-of-24 free throws and forced 19 turnovers.

The Lady Raiders won the rebounding battle 46-37 and held a 34-14 advantage in paint scoring.

“It was a battle, grind-it-out type game, and it could’ve gone either way in the last four minutes,” Stollings said. “The 19 turnovers are really the difference in the game as we look at it, and some of those were unforced. Certainly, credit to West Virginia and the intensity they apply throughout a game, but I thought we made some poor decisions down the stretch and didn’t take care of the ball well enough.”





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