Kysre Gondrezick leads No. 17 WVU women past Lehigh

Associated Press
Monday, March 22, 2021 8:40 a.m. | Monday, March 22, 2021 8:40 a.m.

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West Virginia guard Kysre Gondrezick, left, tries for a steal against Lehigh guard Clair Steele (3) during the first half of a college basketball game in the first round of the women’s NCAA tournament at the Greehey Arena in San Antonio, Texas, Sunday, March 21, 2021.

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West Virginia forward Kari Niblack (14) drives to the basket during the first half of a college basketball game against Lehigh in the first round of the women’s NCAA tournament at the Greehey Arena in San Antonio, Texas, Sunday, March 21, 2021.

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West Virginia forward Esmery Martinez (12) shoots past Lehigh forward Emma Grothaus (25) during the first half of a college basketball game in the first round of the women’s NCAA tournament at the Greehey Arena in San Antonio, Texas, Sunday, March 21, 2021.

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West Virginia forward Kari Niblack (14) tries to get a rebound grabbed by Lehigh guard Megan Walker (10) during the first half of a college basketball game in the first round of the women’s NCAA tournament at the Greehey Arena in San Antonio, Texas, Sunday, March 21, 2021.

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West Virginia center Blessing Ejiofor (22) charges against Lehigh forward Emma Grothaus (25) during the first half of a college basketball game in the first round of the women’s NCAA tournament at the Greehey Arena in San Antonio, Texas, Sunday, March 21, 2021.

SAN ANTONIO — Once West Virginia started running, the Mountaineers couldn’t be stopped.

Kysre Gondrezick scored seven of her 26 points in a game-breaking 16-0 run to close the third quarter and No. 17 West Virginia raced past Lehigh, 77-53, in the opening round of the women’s NCAA Tournament on Sunday night.

The Mountaineers (22-6), the No. 4 seed in the Hemisfair Region, also closed the first half with 10 straight points to help set up a meeting with fifth-seeded Georgia Tech on Tuesday.

“It was just a good game for us to kind of get the kinks out, you know, we’ve been off for a week,” Gondrezick said. “And I think that first quarter we were able to get some of those mistakes (out) that we made, you know, on both offensive and defensive ends.”

Kirsten Deans scored 19 points with eight rebounds and five assists for West Virginia. Esmery Martinez had her 15th double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Deans and Martinez both were 7-of-10 shooting. Gondrezick was 9 of 15 from the field, including 6 of 8 from 3-point range, and grabbed seven rebounds with five assists and four steals.

Emma Grothaus scored 14 points for the Mountain Hawks (11-5), who were in their fourth NCAA Tournament and first since 2010 despite finishing fifth in the Patriot League. Frannie Hottinger added 12 points and Megan Walker 11.

“I thought they came out, particularly in the second half and really established themselves on the defensive end kind of took us out of our offensive flow,” said Sue Troyan, who has coached all of Lehigh’s NCAA Tournament teams. “But I’m super proud of our kids, how they competed, how they represented Lehigh for 40 minutes.”

Deans hit a 3-pointer in the closing seconds of the first half to cap a 10-0 run that gave the Mountaineers a 36-26 lead at the break.

Lehigh was hanging close, trailing 49-39 after a Grothaus 3-pointer, but West Virginia put the game away, taking a 65-39 into the fourth.

West Virginia made both 3s in the 16-0 run and 10 of 13 shots, plus 7 of 8 free throws, and outscored Lehigh 29-13 in the third quarter. The Mountain Hawks missed four shots and had four turnovers in the last 3 1/2 minutes.

The Mountaineers finished 30 for 55 from the field (54.5%), including 8 of 15 from 3-point range and made 9 of 11 free throws. Gondrezick, who played her freshman year at Michigan, reached 2,000 points for her three-year West Virginia career.