COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- No. 3 Ohio State dominated the first 4 minutes and West Virginia never came close to recovering over the last 36.

Samantha Prahalis had 14 points and 12 assists, and the Buckeyes scored the first 17 points to roll past the Mountaineers 92-69 Thursday night in the semifinals of the Preseason WNIT.

"I told the team that's why they're No. 3 in the country and we're not ranked," West Virginia coach Mike Carey said. "We have to learn how to play that hard and that aggressive. We came out standing around and they came out attacking; we came out being attacked."

The Buckeyes (3-0) will host Oklahoma State on Sunday in the Preseason WNIT championship game at Value City Arena.

Prahalis, the diminutive but lightning-fast sophomore point guard, also had five rebounds and a steal.

"We definitely were clicking," said Prahalis about the Buckeyes' play in transition. "We knew that we couldn't really pound it inside, so us running would help open that up."

Preseason All-American Jantel Lavender led Ohio State with 19 points, and freshman Tayler Hill added 14. Brittany Johnson had 13, Shavelle Little 11 and Maria Moeller 10 for the balanced Buckeyes, who shot 60 percent from the field.

Asked if Ohio State had more weapons than last season's 29-6 team that made it to the NCAA regional semifinals, Lavender said, "It's a ton more. If you sub somebody out, somebody else is coming in to bring something different, defensively and offensively. ... It's a lot of different looks. I just like playing with such a deep team. It's like versatility from every position and every player."

Johnson hit two 3-pointers, Hill had five points and Prahalis four in the 17-0 burst during the first 4 minutes. The Mountaineers (2-1), who got 23 points from Liz Repella, pulled to 27-19 with under 7 minutes left in the half. But the Buckeyes went on an 11-0 run.

Down 44-24 at halftime, the Mountaineers drew to 67-52 midway through the half but Prahalis drove the baseline, hit a layup and was fouled, and completed the three-point play. Moments later, she assisted when Maria Moeller tossed in a 3-pointer to make it 73-52, effectively ending any West Virginia hopes.

"That's what basketball is today. It's nothing else. It's media timeouts every 4 minutes," Ohio State coach Jim Foster said. "You might be playing great basketball, and then you've got to go sit down for a couple of minutes. Then you have to get up and start all over again. It's a series of mini-games. That's what it's evolved into. Runs, there's going to be runs. They made one and we countered and got it back. That's what you look for."

Vanessa House added 12 points and Sarah Miles 10 for the Mountaineers, who shot 38 percent from the field.

Little and fellow senior Cherise Daniel were playing for the first time after sitting out the first two games after an undisclosed secondary violation of NCAA rules.

"I really was just thinking about getting back today," said Little, the Big Ten's defensive player of the year the last two seasons. "I know my role on this team. I know I can bring energy and pick us up a little bit."

Little made all five shots from the field and her only foul shot and also had two steals and a blocked shot.

West Virginia plays out of the Big East, home to top-ranked Connecticut and several other top teams. Carey said playing the Buckeyes will help down the road.

"That's a very good basketball team," he said. "I'd hate to play against people better than them in the top five. And we're going to play a couple in our league."

OHIO STATE POSTGAME NOTES

• The game was the 10th all-time meeting between the Buckeyes and the Mountaineers, all Ohio State victories.
• The 92 Buckeye points were a season-best. Ohio State has won three of the four games this season by at least 20 points.
• Neither team had a senior in the starting lineup.
• They Buckeyes are now 4-0 this season and 46-2 since the start of the 2007-08 season when they outshoot their opponents at the free throw line.
• The Buckeyes dished out 20-plus assists for the third-consecutive game.
• The Buckeyes 17-0 run to start the game was the biggest outburst to start a game in 2009 and the second-longest run of the season overall.
• The 26 points the Buckeyes scored in the paint in the first half equaled the total Ohio State points in the paint Tuesday against UAB. The Buckeyes also turned 10 Mountaineer first half turnovers into 17 points, three more than Ohio State recorded all game against the Blazers.
• The Buckeyes allowed just 24 points in the first half for the second consecutive game. The two games marked the least points Ohio State gave up in a half since Iowa scored 17 in the first half of the Big Ten Tournament semifinals March 7, 2009.
• Ohio State led by at least 20 points at the half for the third consecutive game.
• Ohio State connected on 19 first half field goals for the third consecutive game. The Buckeyes also shot over 60 percent from the field in the first half for the second consecutive contest.
• Junior center Jantel Lavender moved into at 13th on the Ohio State career all-time field goals made list with 561 (500-plus).
• Lavender sits 9th all-time in career rebounds (500 plus) in Ohio State history with 721.
• Lavender has missed just two shots from the field after hitting 9-of-10 attempts against the Mountaineers. The junior connected on 12-of-13 shots from the field Tuesday against UAB.
• Lavender has now scored in double-figures in all 70 career games - the longest active streak in Division I.
• In her first action of the season, senior guard Shavelle Little matched her career-best with 11 points off the bench.
• After recording eight assists in each of the first three games this season, sophomore guard Samantha Prahalis dished out 12 against the Mountaineers. The last time a Buckeye recorded double-digit assists was Dec. 3, 2008 when Prahalis handed out 13 helpers against No. 2 North Carolina in the first double-digit assist game of her career.
• Senior guard Maria Moeller poured in a season-high 10 points for the Buckeyes.
• Freshman guard Tayler Hill scored in double-figures for the second time in her young career including a career-high 6-of-7 from the free-throw line.
• Thursday marked the first time the Buckeyes had six players score in double-figures since Dec. 17, 2006 against Howard.
• Ohio State improves to 134-27 (12 seasons) in Value City Arena.
• Ohio State is 112-9 at home under Jim Foster and 85-5 since the start of the 2004-05 season.
• Ohio State has won 96 of its last 97 games at home against unranked opponents.
• Jim Foster is now 185-47 at Ohio State and 689-272 overall.
• Ohio State will play Oklahoma State Sunday at 2 p.m. in Value City Arena in the WNIT championship game. It will be the first matchup between the two schools.

POSTGAME QUOTES

Mike Carey, West Virginia Head Coach
On the game
"It was definitely not the start we wanted. Ohio State was more aggressive and they just outplayed us. That's why they are #3 in the country. We want to be more aggressive as we go forward. It was definitely something to build on and it was a game we wanted to play."

On the difference between Ohio State in the NCAA tournament last year and tonight
"I think they were more physical tonight than in the NCAA. They had great spacing and their guards really killed us. Lavender is going to get her 20, but the guards really killed us."

On Ohio State's ranking
"This was only their fourth game. They are very good, but there are a lot of good teams. They deserve their ranking. They are very strong and physical."

On West Virginia's performance
"We came out flat. We had a good week in practice and a good shootaround, but we were the ones being attacked. We had a run in the first half and cut it to 10, and then had another run to cut it to 15 in the second half. But we relaxed after those."

On individual performances
"Liz (Rapella) hit some threes and I thought (Sarah) Miles played better. (Asya) Bussie did a pretty good job as a freshman on Lavender."

Jim Foster, Ohio State Head Coach
On getting the big lead in beginning of game
"Well, we have been playing games every other day. We have been starting games strong.  We are executing in the half court and we are improving with transitions."

If he could tell Shavelle wanted to play
"Well she can't hide much. It's not in her nature."

On run in the second half
"I'll say it time and time again. This is what basketball is today. There are media timeouts every four minutes.  You can be playing great basketball and then have to go sit down for two minutes.  It is just a series of mini-games.  Each time you go out there it is something different."

On playing next opponent Oklahoma State
"I know they have a lot of new players.  It is junior college country out there. They put teams together quickly. I'll know more tomorrow after I look at some film."

Jantel Lavender, junior center
On being part of a diverse team
"[Our team] has a ton of weapons. The freshmen bring a lot of different things to the table both defensively and offensively. I love playing with a team that is so deep."

On Shavelle Little being back
"It's good to have Shavelle [Little] back. She really pumps up the team. She knows her role and she plays it well."

Samantha Prahalis, sophomore guard
On the high energy
"We clicked together. We knew we couldn't score inside, so we decided to run. Our energy was up, especially when Shavelle [Little] got in the game."

Shavelle Little, senior guard
On getting back into the game
"I really was thinking about getting back today. I know my role, which is to provide the energy. I was pumped, but I think what I did tonight is what I normally do and how I normally play."