West Virginia guard Jordan Harrison (10) during an NCAA college basketball game on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026, in Lawrence, Kan. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

\MORGANTOWN — West Virginia women’s basketball’s win over Colorado wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t going to be an easy game, especially with the Buffaloes playing their best ball heading into the matchup. But at this point in the season, a win is a win, and it’ll help toward the resume for the NCAA Tournament.

“I thought they were playing really, really well coming into this game,” head coach Mark Kellogg said. “It was going to be a big game for us.”

With the win and some chaos in the Big 12, the Mountaineers have a real shot of taking the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament. Right now, WVU is tied with TCU and Baylor with nine wins, but the Mountaineers have an extra loss, so they are a half-game behind the two. WVU will get some help because Baylor, who WVU recently beat, plays TCU on Feb. 12, so one of those teams will lose. Then, the Mountaineers rematch the Horned Frogs three days after TCU’s game against the Bears for potentially the top spot.

However, WVU’s pursuit of No. 1 in the conference means nothing if the Mountaineers can’t take care of business. Luckily, WVU faces two of the worst teams in the Big 12 in back-to-back games, starting on Feb. 7 at 2 p.m. against Arizona in Hope Coliseum.

The Wildcats are 11-11 overall and 2-9 in the conference, which is tied with UCF for the second-worst record in the Big 12. Arizona’s two wins are against BYU and Kansas State, who it just beat 72-62 in its last time out.

The Wildcats aren’t the best defensive team. WVU’s faced a couple of tough defenses, but Arizona is the third-worst defense in the Big 12 and is middle-of-the-road at creating turnovers.

Arizona’s offense is a lot better. The offense had a hot start with guard Mickayla Perdue scoring at just over 17 points a game. She was carrying the offense. But Perdue hasn’t played since Jan. 6, dealing with an injury. Without Perdue, Arizona had to spread the ball around. Guards Noelani Cornfield, Sumayah Sugapong and Tanyuel Welch stepped up, filling in the hole that Perdue’s left behind.

Cornfield had 21 points against Kansas State. Sophomore Nigerian forward Blessing “Adde” Adebanjo had a big game against Kansas State, too, with 17. She’s starting to find her footing after transferring over from an overseas institution in Japan. Adebanjo has a strong presence in the paint at 6-foot-3, and had six blocks last time out.

Even with the win over Kansas State, WVU shouldn’t have too much of an issue because it is playing better defensively, which matches up against Arizona’s better half. WVU hasn’t allowed more than 60 points in back-to-back games.

Guard Jordan Harrison is making a case for Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, too. Harrison had 18 steals over the past three games and leads the conference with three a game. She’s also scored 18 in the last three games. Arizona is one of the more careful teams with the ball, so it might be harder to create extra possessions on Saturday.

“She’s the head of the snake for us,” head coach Mark Kellogg said of Harrison. “She’s been with me the entire time. She’s a four-year kid in our program that I have full trust in.”

There are still areas to improve, even after beating Baylor and Colorado. Kellogg liked how WVU played in front against the Buffaloes, but would’ve favored some more turnovers and more points off turnovers, where WVU usually excels.

Against Arizona and UCF, it’s a good time to iron out the kinks. WVU will need to be at full strength to beat the Horned Frogs in the rematch in Fort Worth.