Following a 76-59 victory over UCF on Saturday, West Virginia women’s basketball head coach Mark Kellogg addressed accomplishments and possible challenges ahead of a conference matchup with Houston on Wednesday.
“A good week and a bounce back last Saturday at UCF after that disappointing loss (against Iowa State),” Kellogg started.
“But, I like the response from our group, I like the second half response. In particular, in that third quarter I thought we played pretty well and (JJ) Quinerly got going and of course got her 1,000th point, but we just needed her to take over a little bit and she did that,” he continued.
Quinerly ended with 21 points and four assists in the win.
The 5-foot-8 guard from Norfolk, Virginia has been with WVU since 2021 and is averaging 18.3 points this season, shooting 44.3% from the field.
“Now we regroup a little bit and get ready for Houston, who I’m somewhat familiar with. We’ve played them a couple of times when I was at SFA (Stephen F. Austin), played them two years ago and the year before that. So, some familiarity with Houston and their roster,” Kellogg said.
Kellogg’s Lumberjacks’ team would fall to the Cougars in 2020, but defeat them in 2021.The Lady Cougars are 11-5 this season, 2-3 in conference play, averaging 74.9 points a game and allowing 67.1.
“A lot of their roster we’re familiar with, recruited some of those kids way back in the day. Some have been at Houston for awhile, some have transferred in,” Kellogg said.
The WVU women’s basketball team has struggled with depth recently which could be a factor moving forward, but Kellogg has still used the same starting lineup all 16 games thus far.
“I think as a coach I want to sustain it if we can. I don’t really (like) lineups and rolls being up and down and all over the place and these kids not knowing what to expect each night,” Kellogg said.
While he has heavily relied on that starting five, players coming into foul trouble and need breaks from time to time prompting Kellogg to rely on the bench depth he has, which isn’t a ton.
“Depth, is what comes to mind,” Kellogg said when asked what he needed as Big 12 play ensues.
“The kids we have are fine, we have depth that’s not a problem, but we need more. Like in practice we had nine players yesterday (Monday), that ain’t it.”
Kellogg and the Mountaineers will host Houston at home Wednesday, with tip-off set for 7 p.m. EST and the game being streamed on ESPN+.
