West Virginia men's basketball faired considerably better on Tuesday in the second game of their road trip to Utah.
After getting pummeled by the BYU Cougars on Saturday night, the Mountaineers were left with some work to do to cement their NCAA Tournament case. Going up against a familiar face in the Josh Eilert-led Utah Utes, WVU was able to pick up a massive Quad 1 road win in the final week of the regular season as they defeated the Utes 71-69.
Javon Small is "a Supernova"
In a game that was truly an all-out team effort, it was once again senior Javon Small who played a step above the others for the Mountaineers.
Small finished the night with 18 points and 7 assists, while helping WVU take control of the action late. With 3:42 to play in the game, a Small three-pointer gave the Mountaineers a 61-58 lead -- it would be the eventual game-winning lead change.
The very next WVU possession, Small used his court vision to dish a dime of a pass to center Eduardo Andre to create an opportunity at the rim which increased the lead to five points. After a Utah answered on the ensuing possession with a three-pointer cut into the lead, Small picked up his seventh assist to find Joseph Yesufu for a clutch field goal from behind-the-arc with two minutes to play.
Then, as the game crept into it's final moments with his team holding just a two-point lead, it was Small who hit a running shot in the lane to give his team a two-possession lead with 37 seconds remaining.
This late-game performance by Small led to the ESPN+ broadcast crew describing Small as being "inevitable,” and "a supernova.” Tonight, as he has been for much of this season, Javon Small was absolutely crucial for the Mountaineers.
Notable Box Score Numbers Did Not Favor West Virginia Despite The Win
WVU's heart-pounding escape from Salt Lake City turned out to be a win -- which was vitally important. But it was also messier than the Mountaineers would hope for, which can be seen in the box score.
To start, Utah received double the amount of free throw attempts that the Mountaineers did -- WVU earned just 16 opportunities from the foul line to Utah's 32. The disparity in free throw attempts for WVU has often been a trend for the team this season.
WVU managed to knock down 11-of-16 from the charity stripes, while the Utes kconverted 22-of-32 attempts. West Virginia had two starters in foul trouble, and forward Toby Okani fouled out of the game. Utah, meanwhile, had no starters with more than two fouls.
Additionally, Utah outdid the undersized Mountaineers on the glass, collecting 40 rebounds (14 offensive) on the night compared WVU's 31 boards. The Utes also converted one more shot from behind-the-arc (9) than West Virginia (8), and outscored WVU 14-13 on points off turnovers.
Despite some unfavorable numbers, WVU used their grit to secure a huge win -- but they will certainly want to shore up some of their messier tendencies displayed on Tuesday,
The Big Picture
The magnitude of this road win for West Virginia cannot be overstated.
As a team looking to secure their place in the NCAA Tournament, a road win against a Quad 1 opponent goes a long way. WVU is now 18-12 overall and 9-10 in conference play.
On Saturday, West Virginia will play their regular-season finale as they host the UCF Knights (15-14, 6-12) at the WVU Coliseum at 5pm ET. The game gives West Virginia has an opportunity to end the season .500 in conference play and likely secure an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
They will also be playing for a chance at a first-round bye in the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City next week, which could go a long way in setting up a potential conference tournament run to better their postseason resume further.