West Virginia Women’s Basketball Wins First Big 12 Championship Since 2017

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The West Virginia University women’s basketball team defeated top-seeded and No. 10 nationally-ranked TCU, 62-53, on Sunday night inside the T-Mobile Center to win the program’s second-ever Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship trophy.^[2] This marks the third conference tournament title in school history and the first since winning the 2017 Big 12 Tournament. Prior to that, WVU hadn’t claimed a conference tournament title since the 1989 Atlantic 10 Tournament.

Senior guard Jordan Harrison led the Mountaineers with 21 points, six rebounds, four assists, and three steals, earning her the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player award.^[2]

Mountaineers Control the Boards

West Virginia outrebounded a taller TCU team 41-34, with Kierra Wheeler contributing 10 points and eight rebounds, and Carter McCray adding eight boards.^[2] Sydney Shaw added 17 points, making three of her six field goal attempts from beyond the arc.^[2]

Game Highlights

Harrison opened the scoring with a three-pointer, and after a response from TCU’s Olivia Miles, she found an open Shaw for a transition three. Harrison’s defensive pressure led to a steal and an straightforward layup, extending WVU’s lead to 12-5 at the five-minute mark. TCU scored the next seven points before Harrison hit a midrange jumper just before the end of the first quarter, giving West Virginia a two-point advantage.^[2]

The second quarter saw a back-and-forth battle, with TCU briefly taking the lead before Shaw hit a pull-up jumper and Harrison converted two free throws to level the score. Shaw then knocked down her second three-pointer of the contest, giving the Mountaineers a 26-23 halftime lead.^[2]

West Virginia extended its lead to 11 points late in the third quarter, fueled by turnovers forced from TCU. Harrison hit a shot at the buzzer to provide WVU a 43-32 lead entering the fourth quarter.^[2]

In the fourth quarter, WVU pushed its lead to as many as 14 points. TCU attempted a late comeback, closing the gap to six points with 34 seconds remaining, but clutch free throws from Harrison secured the championship for West Virginia.^[2]

All-Tournament Team

The 2026 Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball All-Tournament team included: Jordan Harrison (MOP), Sydney Shaw (West Virginia), Jordan Speiser (K-State), Olivia Miles (TCU), and Marta Suarez.^[2]

Tournament Records

West Virginia set a new single-tournament program record with 108 rebounds. Harrison became WVU’s single-tournament steals leader with 10 steals, and Wheeler became the program’s single-tournament rebound leader with 26 boards.^[2]

Road to the Championship

During the tournament, WVU defeated No. 10-seed Arizona State (67-54), No. 6-seed Colorado (48-47), and top-seeded/No. 10-ranked TCU.^[2] West Virginia also shared the regular-season Big 12 title with Baylor during the 2014 season.

NCAA Tournament Bound

West Virginia will now await the NCAA Tournament selection reveal on Sunday, March 15, which will air on ESPN at 8 p.m. ET.^[2]