West Virginia 64, Monmouth 54: Juwan Staten had 20 points as the host Mountaineers rallied late to beat the Hawks.
Devin Williams added 15 points and 15 rebounds for West Virginia (1-0) despite going 3-of-14 from the floor. The Mountaineers forced 24 turnovers but struggled offensively until a 20-6 run in the final five minutes.
Deon Jones led Monmouth (0-1) with 14 points and Andrew Nicholas added 10 points. Brice Kofane had eight points, 11 rebounds and two blocks before fouling out with five minutes left.
The Mountaineers missed 13 shots during a seven-minute span in the middle of the first half but still led 20-14 when the streak ended on Staten's 3-pointer with six minutes left. The Hawks finished the half on a 12-1 run - including Nicholas' 3-pointer and layup - for a 26-21 halftime lead.
The Hawks opened the second half with an 11-2 run to push their lead to 14 points before West Virginia started a rally behind Jaysean Paige's 3-pointer and Gary Browne's steal and layup with 13 minutes left. Chase Connor started a 13-2 run with a 3-pointer and Staten's free throws with less than five minutes left put the Mountaineers on top for good.
GAME NOTEBOOK: West Virginia closed the first half missing 10 straight field goals and shot 16.7 percent in the opening 20 minutes. ... The Mountaineers went 22-of-34 from the foul line, but hit 11 in a row to end the game. ... West Virginia junior F BillyDee Williams, a transfer from South Plains Community College, is out indefinitely after suffering a fractured orbital bone after during practice on Thursday.
Monmouth-NJ | West Virginia | |
Deon Jones 14 | Scoring | Juwan Staten 20 |
Justin Robinson 2 | Assists | Gary Browne 2 |
Brice Kofane 11 | Rebounds | Devin Williams 15 |
Deon Jones 6 | Free Throws Made | Juwan Staten 11 |
Justin Robinson 3 | Steals | Gary Browne 3 |
Brice Kofane 2 | Blocks | Devin Williams 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Monmouth-NJ | 54 | 44.7 | 2-9 | 18-22 | 5 | 30 | 4 | 7 | 23 |
West Virginia | 64 | 26.1 | 6-29 | 22-34 | 9 | 44 | 2 | 11 | 14 |