Wyckoff Leads Yale with 15 Points

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – The Yale women's basketball team is gaining quite a reputation for scaring power-five conference teams, with Sunday's game against West Virginia at Mohegan Sun being the latest example.

With 1:09 remaining in the game, the Bulldogs (4-3) had cut a once 15-point deficit down to just three at 63-60. A 12-point performance by senior captain Whitney Wyckoff (Wrest Chester, Ohio) in that period made a comeback possible.

The Mountaineers, led by New Haven, Conn. native Bria Holmes, held-off the determined Elis with a 7-0 run to the end the game. It was the final contest in the 2015 Hall of Fame Women's Challenge, a tournament that Yale finished 2-2 in – yet it's not that simple.

"We played great pressure defense in the fourth quarter, but I was really disappointed with our performance out of the gate," said Joel E. Smilow '54 head coach Allison Guth. "I have a lot of pride about my team's gumption in fighting back from a deficit."

It was the second time in eight days that the Bulldogs played a team from a power-five conference; the other being North Carolina last Sunday in Chapel Hill, N.C. Yale trailed by double-digits in that game too, before pushing the Heels to the limit in the final minutes.

In their three losses this season, the Elis have lost to three teams that were receiving votes in the AP Top 25 and USA Today Coaches Polls in the preseason – Dayton, North Carolina, and West Virginia. Yale lost those games by an average of just over seven points.

"You can't dig yourself a hole like we did against as good of a team as West Virginia," said Guth. "West Virginia does a great job of taking you out of your offensive sets, but we had a much better aggressive attack to the rim in the second half."

The slow start Guth referred to was a 21-8 deficit that the Bulldogs faced after the first quarter – a period where the Elis struggled shooting from the field and went 0-4 from the free throw line. As a team, Yale was 3-of-10 from the stripe at halftime.

"Between a few turnovers and a lot of missed free throws, we feel we could have won this game down the stretch," said Wyckoff, who scored a team-high 15 points.

A 14-10 advantage in the second quarter for the Bulldogs cut the West Virginia lead to nine by the intermission. Sophomore guard Tamara Simpson (North Babylon, N.Y.) faced foul trouble in the first 20 minutes, but still managed a team-best six points.

The tenacious Yale defense even held the Mountaineers without a point for a period of 4:42 in the second quarter, while keeping Holmes scoreless.

The two teams traded baskets in the third quarter, with the Mountaineers unable to pull away and the Bulldogs unable to creep closer. Yale trailed 53-44 heading into the fourth, falling victim to 11 points by Holmes in the period which kept West Virginia one step ahead.

Keeping the deficit to single-digits for most of the fourth, Wyckoff took charge. Her drives to the hoop on offense and tight pressure defense not only helped Yale on the scoreboard, but helped to inspire her teammates.

"She is such a fierce competitor. She's everywhere – from an offensive standpoint, she's aggressive and strong as a guard," said Guth. "Defensively, she hounds you. She's on both ends of the floor. I'm really impressed with her but we needed more pieces today."

Wyckoff was 6-of-6 from the free throw line in the final quarter, at one stretch scoring 10 straight points for Yale (from 7:52 to 3:30).

Down by three with just over a minute left, West Virginia got a layup from Lanay Montgomery to extend the lead to five. Senior forward Nyasha Sarju's (Seattle, Wash.) shot rimmed out on the next possession, leading the Mountaineers to the line and a 10-point victory.

West Virginia was the WNIT runner-up in the 2014-15 season – a team that qualified for the NCAA Tournament in the five previous years before that. And Yale took them down to the wire.

Simpson scored 11 points for the Elis, while Sarju and junior forward Katie Werner (Phoenix, Ariz.) each chipped in eight. Wyckoff was named Yale's player of the game following the final whistle, being awarded with a plaque on the court.

Holmes ended with 18 points in her return to Connecticut with the Mountaineers, while F Teana Muldrow finished with a game-high 22 points.

"I want to thank the Naismith Hall of Fame for being in this tournament. It was a great experience," said Guth after the game. "We talk about growing the game and getting the chance to learn about the history of the game, it's an honor. We're lucky we get to do something we love."

Yale returns to action this week with three home games: Manhattan on Tuesday at 7 p.m., Army on Thursday at 7 p.m. and Wagner on Sunday at 2 p.m. All games will be available on the Ivy League Digital Network.

Filed by Steve Lewis, Yale Sports Publicity