Blacksten Giving Mountaineer Girls a Huge Increase – West Virginia College Athletics

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Kylee Blacksten certain picked the precise time to be taking part in the perfect basketball of her school profession.
 
The senior ahead tallied a career-high 24 factors in West Virginia’s runaway 89-59 victory at Arizona State on Wednesday evening, the newest in a string of high quality video games she’s put collectively for the 16^th-ranked Mountaineers, now 16-3 general and No. 11 in immediately’s NCAA NET rankings.
 
Blacksten’s surge started three weeks in the past with a double-digit scoring efficiency in a blowout highway victory at Texas Tech and continued with a 16-point effort in a detailed highway loss at Oklahoma State, which simply knocked off No. 9 TCU in Stillwater.
 
She contributed 10 factors and 6 rebounds in a blowout dwelling win in opposition to Colorado after which added eight factors on three-of-three taking pictures in simply 11 minutes of motion in a house victory in opposition to Iowa State.
 
Her restricted utilization in opposition to the Cyclones was the results of her stepping into early foul bother whereas battling Iowa State middle Audi Crooks, however she was a part of a four-player effort that restricted Crooks to a season-low 13 factors, 9 lower than her season common.
 
In her most up-to-date outing, Blacksten made seven-of-12 from the ground, together with three-of-five from behind the 3-point arc, and hit all seven of her free throws. 
 
She is averaging 13.6 factors per contest over her final 5 video games, 4 of these Mountaineer victories.
 
Total, the Colorado Springs, Colorado, resident has boosted her season scoring common to eight.4 factors per recreation, which is giving West Virginia one more dependable offensive risk.
 
Senior guard J.J. Quinerly’s 19 points-per-game common leads the Mountaineers, whereas junior guards Jordan Harrison (14.1 ppg.) and Sydney Shaw (12.5 ppg.) have been the staff’s different two main scorers.
 
Due to what Blacksten is now including to the lineup together with her perimeter scoring and improved protection, that’s inflicting opponents to have to regulate their lineups, like Arizona State did two nights in the past.
 
“I do not know if Arizona State modified their lineup due to (Blacksten), however we thought possibly that was to match up with Kylee slightly bit,” West Virginia coach Mark Kellogg famous.
 
Kellogg inherited Blacksten from the prior teaching workers, who found her within the switch portal after two seasons at Colorado.
Since then, she’s made vital strides in her all-around recreation, primarily as a result of Kellogg is just not asking her to do issues she will’t do.
 
“We play her in a distinct position than some folks would possibly consider as a 5 participant,” he defined. “We do not ask her to be a back-to-the-basket participant. We need to use her the opposite manner and stretch the ground and provides us some area to the rim.”
 
Simply ask Crooks, top-of-the-line put up gamers in girls’s school basketball. Kylee’s quickness, infinite power and efficient exterior taking pictures performed a task in Crooks’ uncommon off-day final Sunday in Morgantown.
 
Blacksten has completed this to different conventional put up gamers as properly, which makes her such a giant asset in Kellogg’s frenetic, up-and-down, baseline-to-baseline model he has delivered to West Virginia, ensuing within the Mountaineers profitable 41 of their final 52 video games.
 
Blacksten’s growth beneath Kellogg has included the flexibility to attain off the bounce going to the basket, one thing her different coaches actually by no means requested her to try this a lot. 
 
Till lately, her recreation was principally spent behind the 3-point arc.
 
“I feel it is one thing the place you at all times attempt to develop, whether or not it is the defensive finish or offensive finish,” she mentioned of her latest growth. “It is at all times eager to proceed to get higher in any side that I should be. I feel I’ve grown slightly bit extra within the low put up space as a result of that is not the place I grew up taking part in, so it is type of been a swap of mentality.”
 
Her coach couldn’t agree extra.
 
“She is taking part in very well and is taking part in with a ton of confidence proper now,” he remarked. “She has at all times had the flexibility to do it. She may be generally undersized for what we’re asking her to do, relying upon the matchup, however she simply performed in opposition to Audi Crooks, and I believed she did an exceptional job defensively in that recreation.
 
“She’s taking part in the perfect I’ve seen her play since I have been right here, and I certain hope it continues,” he concluded.
 
West Virginia stays within the Grand Canyon State and can face Arizona in Tucson on Saturday evening. The Wildcats have been latest 10-point winners over Cincinnati to enhance to 13-8 general and 4-4 in Huge 12 play.
 
The Mountaineers are tied with 6-2 Oklahoma State for fourth place within the league standings behind Kansas State (7-0), TCU (7-1) and Baylor (6-1).
 
Tip off for Saturday’s recreation is 8:30 p.m. and will probably be televised on ESPN+.