West Virginia men's basketball has found themselves playing in a number of games down the stretch of this season that felt as if they were must-win scenarios. And the situation before WVU on Tuesday night proved no different.
After a loss to BYU this past weekend, it appeared likely that the Mountaineers would want to go 2-for-2 during the final week of the regular season to feel secure in receiving an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.
The matchup with the Utes was an absolute grind of a game for the Mountaineers, but it ended mostly as WVU had hoped.
WVU forward Toby Okani fouled out in a whistle-happy environment, center Eduardo Andre likely suffered a likely broken nose that left him drenched in blood, and the two teams fought back-and-forth down to the wire -- despite a late six-point lead, the 71-69 win wasn't secured until the final minutes for West Virginia (18-12, 9-10).
[Eduardo] was playing with four cotton pins in his nose, he will probably need a quart of blood tonight," WVU Head Coach Darian DeVries told Mountaineer Sports Network after the game.
"I thought our guys, we came out and just didn't have much those first 15 minutes. What I was really proud of the guys about, is they bounced out of it...I thought in the second half we really dug in."
WVU shot 50 percent from the field in the final 20 minutes of play, and the Mountaineers saw four players hit double-digit scoring led by an 18 point, 7 assist performance from senior guard Javon Small.
NCAA Tournament Hopes Alive and Well for West Virginia
The win against Utah (16-14, 8-11) -- a Quad 1 victory on the road in Big 12 action -- will go a long way by itself in helping secure an NCAA Tournament bid for the Mountaineers. If they can combine it with a win over UCF this coming weekend to close the regular season, WVU might not need to do much at the Big 12 Tournament to earn their spot in the Big Dance.
"We had a lot on the line for this game. They knew that. I thought they did a really good job at staying together and continuing to fight...it was a huge win for us and there's no way to diminish what that means for our season right now," DeVries said.
Josh Eilert Falls in WVU Revenge Game
Less than one full year after being dismissed from Morgantown following an unsuccessful season as Interim Head Coach, former Mountaineer coach Josh Eilert found himself in the same position for Utah across the court from his former employer.
While Eilert was unable to pull off what would have been an undoubtedly bittersweet win, he had his team well-prepared to fight with the Mountaineers and was given his flowers from DeVries following the game.
"I want to give a lot of credit to Josh...they're doing a really good job in a tough spot right now," DeVries said. "He has this team competing right now and i think that says a lot about his character and ability to lead young men."