West Virginia (12-3, 3-1) collected their third win in Big 12 play on Sunday afternoon after fending off a second-half surge from Colorado (9-6, 0-4). With the 78-70 victory, WVU improves to 3-1 in conference play and wins this one in bounce-back fashion after falling to Arizona on Tuesday night.
Javon Small once again played well for the shorthanded Mountaineers, finishing with 26 points. Small needed some help however and he got it in the form of Joseph Yesufu. The senior guard who provided a spark off the bench and then some, finishing with 18 points and contributing a series of baskets in crunch time that helped WVU to extend their lead. Yesufu, who has had some big moments already in a WVU uniform, undoubtedly had his best game and biggest contribution on Sunday afternoon in Boulder. He reached the double-digit scoring mark for just the second time all season, the previous coming in West Virginia’s blowout victory over NC Central on December 10th when he scored 14 points.
What exactly did Joseph Yesufu provide for the Mountaineers on the road?
Yesufu contributed 18 points in the win but his on-court presence was felt in more ways than one. For starters, the already shorthanded Mountaineers ran into pretty significant foul trouble. Guard Sencire Harris fouled out with 5:28 to go in the second half, Colorado's Julian Hammond III knocked down a pair of free throws to cut the WVU lead to just 2 at that point.
With Harris no longer an option and backup guard KJ Tenner sidelined with an injury, in comes Yesufu. In the final 5-minute window of a tight contest, Yesufu scored 8 of his 18 points. He was also efficient with his scoring, shooting 6-for-9 from the floor, knocking down a pair of threes, and going 4-for-5 from the free throw line. Yesufu also clocked a season hih 28 minutes in the game.
"I thought Joe Yesufu coming in really gave us a good spark when we needed it the most, because our offense had really gotten a little stagnant, settling for jumpers off some of their switching and things," Head Coach Darian DeVries said after the game. "I thought Joe was really able to give us that spark we needed."
In a lot of ways, West Virginia has lived out the “next man up” mantra, and it has led to a lot of success. Javon Small’s scoring and facilitating have been a must-feature in all of the Mountaineer victories in conference play thus far, but other than Small, different players have made their presence felt from game to game.
Against Colorado, it was an 18-point performance by Joseph Yesufu. But against Kansas, it was a 15-point, 4-block performance from Eduardo Andre that was critical to victory. And against Oklahoma State, Jonathan Powell scored 17 points on 5 made threes. The Mountaineers continue to get key contributions from their role players at very opportune times. WVU has a pair of tough tests against ranked opponents this week beginning on the road at No. 12 Houston on Wednesday, which will be followed by a home contest with No. 3 Iowa State on Saturday.