The Cowgirls earned a spot in the top 25 and threw it away in their first game as a ranked team. On Tuesday, No. 24 Oklahoma State lost to Houston 79-76 at the

Kierra Merchant scored 15 of her 20 points in the middle quarters, and Houston barely hung on to a 79-76 victory to topple Oklahoma State for its first Big 12 win of the season. Merchant netted nine points in the second period as Houston (5-12,

The Oklahoma State Cowgirls are now in the top 25 and will look to stay there Tuesday night when when they travel to face Houston.

The West Virginia Mountaineers (12-3. 3-1) wrap up a two-game road trip at the No. 10 Houston Cougars (12-3, 4-0) Wednesday night. Tip-off is set for 8:00 p.m. EST and the action will stream on ESPN+.

WVU has undergone a massive defensive turnaround under new head coach Darian DeVries. The Mountaineers are 10th in the country in 3-point defense (28.1%) and should limit a Houston squad that shoots a sizzling 41.5% from deep.