SAN DIEGO — Sensing a soft spot in Murray State’s defense, fifth-seeded West Virginia gored its way inside for baskets and advanced into the second round of the NCAA tournament.
The Mountaineers scored 48 points in the paint and took a season-low 11 attempts from 3-point range, the formula for a commanding 85-68 victory on Friday.
West Virginia (25-10) must stave off another upset-craving mid-major opponent Sunday — one with a local flavor to be tasted across three time zones — after 13th-seeded Marshall toppled Wichita State 81-75.
“They’re going to be ready to see a battle,” WVU point guard Jevon Carter said of the Herd. “Two very good teams going up against each other, in-state rivalry. We’ll see what happens.”
BOXSCORE: West Virginia 85, Murray State 68
Playing in his eighth NCAA tournament game, Carter displayed his postseason best against Murray State (26-6) — generating 21 points, eight assists, six steals and five rebounds.
The Big 12’s two-time defensive player of the year also had a hand (sometimes two of them) in holding Ohio Valley Conference MVP Jonathan Stark to 1-of-12 shooting.
“I would be shocked if he didn’t play that way. He plays that way all the time,” West Virginia coach Bob Huggins said. “So it’s kind of expected, you know?”
After hoisting 21 3-pointers in the conference tournament, Carter attempted only one against the Racers. He converted 9-of-16 shots inside the arc, creating four and-one opportunities.
Attacking inside became West Virginia’s plan, leading to 16 points by reserve forward Teddy Allen, 14 from center Sagaba Konate and 52-percent shooting. The Mountaineers improved to 67-5 under Huggins when making more than half their shots.
“We knew this wasn’t a defensive-minded team, and we didn’t want to settle for 3s,” said Allen, who hadn’t scored in double figures since Feb. 12.
When Allen exited with 2:13 left, Huggins greeted him with a pat on the behind, a reassuring gesture for the freshman who endured a two-game midseason benching for what the coach called attitude problems.
Morale soared as West Virginia enjoyed a double-digit lead for much of the second half, ending Murray State’s 13-game winning streak. After the Racers drew within 49-44, Carter fueled a 9-1 spurt that re-established the favorites.
He pressured Stark one-on-one near halfcourt, stealing the ball and racing toward what looked to be a breakaway before shoveling to former walk-on Logan Routt for a dunk that had the WVU bench detonating.
“He was running hard so I had to reward him,” Carter said.
Routt scored a career-high seven points, combining with Allen to give the Mountaineers a 23-12 edge in bench scoring.
With Stark struggling, Murray State endured a 3-of-15 dry spell late. The senior scored only nine points, 12 below his average. Terrell Miller’s monster performance of 27 points and 17 rebounds wasn’t enough to save Murray State.
“They were probably as physical as we thought,” said the 6-foot-8 Miller, who stepped outside to made five 3s. “They are a tough team. Credit to them on the defensive end. They have guys that come off the bench and they come in and play hard. They have a nice team.”
The Racers committed 16 turnovers, made 7-of-23 from 3-point range and shot 41 percent overall.
“We weren’t horrible against the press,” Murray State coach Matt McMahon said. “I thought we would be able to attack the press, but their halfcourt defense is just so good.”
That defense figures to be challenged in the next game, with Marshall sporting the nation’s 11th-highest scoring offense (84.3) and huge chip from decades of playing in the Mountaineers’ shadow.
“It’s March Madness,” Carte said, “so it don’t matter who we play, we’re going to come like it’s a rivalry.”