HARTFORD, CT. -- No. 2 seed West Virginia rode a stellar defensive effort to survive a scare tonight against No. 7 DePaul in the Big East Women's Basketball Tournament at the XL Center.

The Mountaineers beat the Blue Demons, 47-41, and as a result will play tomorrow night against the winner of the late quarterfinal between Rutgers and Georgetown.

The game was tied 36-36 with 6:05 to play but the Blue Demons finally wilted under the constant pressure of the Mountaineers defense and West Virginia (27-4) closed the game on an 11-5 run.

DePaul (21-11) shot only 29 percent from the field (13-for-44) and 23 percent from 3-point range (3-for-13) and turned the ball over 22 times as West Virginia registered 14 steals.

Liz Repella led the Mountaineers with 16 points but the star down the stretch was Madina Ali, who had only six points but registered four steals and created a lot of problems for DePaul's offense.

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