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Youngsters prove they’re ‘True Blue’ as West Virginia rolls

West Virginia’s Devin Williams drew a crowd of Oklahoma State defenders and finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds.

 

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Sophomore Devin Williams produced 22 points and 13 rebounds, freshman Daxter Miles scored 13 and sophomore Tarik Phillip provided steady minutes at point guard as the underclassmen ruled Senior Day for No. 20 West Virginia.

The Mountaineers, short-handed again without senior guards Juwan Staten and Gary Browne, downed Oklahoma State, 81-72, sweeping the home-and-home series with a spirited regular-season finale.

“We’re just playing ball and competing,” said Williams, who made 14-of-15 free throws. “You can’t feel sorry for yourself. Either you don’t want to step up to the plate or you don’t. And the guys we have want to take a swing.”

Building upon an emotional pregame ceremony that left coach Bob Huggins and his seniors wiping away tears, West Virginia (23-8, 11-7 in the Big 12) rewarded the sellout crowd with another resume-building victory.

The Mountaineers got another big game from their reserves—outscoring the Cowboys’ bench 28-3—and behind Williams’ toughness, they dominated the rebounding 33-22.

“We got whipped in there pretty good,” said Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford.

Jeff Newberry scored a season-high 23, Anthony Hickey finished with 17 and Phil Forte added 13 for the Cowboys (18-12, 8-10), whose NCAA tournament hopes may hinge on what they can accomplish next week in the Big 12 Conference tournament.

Le’Bryan Nash scored eight points in the opening 10 minutes, but was 0-of-6 from the floor the rest of the way and finished with 10 points. The Big 12’s leader in foul shots was limited to two free throws and OSU shot just 11. West Virginia converted 23 of 30.

“We didn’t get to the free-throw line the way we anticipated,” Ford said, “and I guess we fouled too much.”

Despite hitting their first six shots and making 60 percent during the opening half, the Cowboys fell behind 84 seconds into the game and never caught up.

The Mountaineers led 39-33 at the break and enjoyed a double-digit cushion throughout much of the second half, stretching it to 65-50 on a 3-pointer by guard Jaysean Paige with 6:43 to play.

Oklahoma State never drew closer than seven from there, despite finishing 11-of-21 from 3-point range.

“Offense wasn’t the problem,” Ford said. “We just could never get the big rebound or the stop we needed to get a run going.”

Though Huggins offered no timetable on the return of Staten (knee) or Browne (ankle), his squad showed plenty of resolve after nearly upsetting Kansas on earlier this week.

“This is not a bunch that’s going to lay it down,” he said. “They’re too competitive. It’s not in their DNA.”

Bench delivers: Jevon Carter, West Virginia’s third option at point guard with Staten and Browne injured, finished 1-of-6 shooting with five points and spent the final 14:48 of the first half in foul trouble. That meant more minutes for Phillip,  who finished with eight points and three assists.

Nate Adrian and Paige added nine points each on a combined 7-of-13 shooting, and Elijah Macon produced eight points and four rebounds in 12 minutes.

OSU defenseless: The Cowboys, who came in allowing only 61.6 points per game, gave up an average of 77 against West Virginia this season.

“When you’re making 3s and making free throws like they are, you’re going to score a lot of points,” Ford said.





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