The Mountaineers, aided by 10 MU free throw misses in the second half, got key baskets from Sanni and LaQuita Ownes down the stretch and scored on a late inbounds play to Sparkle Davis to go ahead 56-51. Ahead three, WVU had its possession knocked out of bounds by Marshall with three seconds left on the shot clock and about one minute remaining in the game. Powell inbounded to a cutting Davis for the easy lay-in and a five-point lead. The Herd never scored again.
Sanni was dominant inside – the main reason WVU had a 34-6 edge in points in the paint – but often didn’t see the ball for key stretches. She added 12 rebounds for a double-double. Chakhia Cole had just five points, but her 12 rebounds tied for game high. Powell, whose career high is 14 points against Howard last season, made six of nine shots in a game where West Virginia shot just 39.7 percent. She also had five of WVU’s 12 assists – and five turnovers in a game in which it had 17 against the Herd’s 14.
Marshall was led by Kizzy Hart’s 18. Hart was originally recruited and signed by West Virginia but failed to qualify academically. The Detroit native attended a junior college before signing at Marshall. No other MU player was in double figures. The Herd (11-8) led for the majority of the first half via its points off turnovers (it had an 18-12 edge overall) and into the middle of the second period before WVU (15-3) took the lead for good. It held MU without a field goal over the final 2:30.
There were nine lead changes and six ties. Sanni was named game MVP for West Virginia during its fourth straight win. Hart took the honors for Marshall.
Box Score