WVU coasts to 79-45 win over North Carolina Central in first game without Tucker DeVries

Hours before West Virginia men's basketball was set to host North Carolina Central, some news broke that brought concern to the Mountaineers fans -- starting forward Tucker DeVries, who averages over 14 points per game, is out of action indefinitely.

In the long run, that could hamper the team's chances of success after an unexpectedly strong start to the season. But on Tuesday against the Eagles, it didn't seem to matter much at all as WVU easily ran away with a 79-45 victory.

The Mountaineers (7-2) weren't spectacular in terms of shooting percentage, hitting just over 41% of their shots from the field, but 15-of28 made field goals for the team came from behind-the-arc, which helped WVU pile on the points -- they were paced in scoring by freshman Jonathan Powell with 17 points and four three-point buckets, while senior Joseph Yesufu added 14 points and four three-pointers. Senior Javon Small added 12 points with a pair of triples, while senior Jake Auer splashed a trio of made shots from behind-the-arc late to tally 9 points.

The Mountaineers were tough again on the boards, as they outrebounded NC Central (4-8) 45-30 overall behind a 12 rebound performance from sophomore Amani Hansberry. Senior Eduardo Andre also contributed 8 boards while chipping in 4 blocks as well.