WVU Knocks off No. 17 UConn
November 23, 2014 10:25 PM | General
The game advance in the Hartford Courant for tonight’s Puerto Rico Tipoff Championship game was mostly a sentimental trip down memory lane.
There was mention of the games West Virginia and Connecticut used to play when the two were in the Big East (mostly West Virginia losses) and how Bob Huggins wanted no part of any reunions with former coach Jim Calhoun.
And when it finally got around to tonight’s game there was mention of UConn seeking a win over a “brand name” school like West Virginia to improve its national ranking ahead of its big game coming up against Texas in Gampel Pavilion on Nov. 30.
Well, so much for that.
Juwan Staten showed everyone around the country that the best point guard on the floor tonight was wearing a white jersey – not the blue one Ryan Boatright was wearing – the Mountaineer senior finishing with a game-high 21 points to lead West Virginia to a 78-68 victory over the defending national champion Huskies to claim the 2014 Puerto Rico Tipoff in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
"We play so hard," said West Virginia coach Bob Huggins. "I'm not sure they know what the heck they are doing all the time - and I'm not sure what they are doing all the time - but they play so hard and it kind of compensates for some of that."
Staten was named MVP of the Puerto Rico Tipoff and joining him on the all-tournament team was forward Devin Williams, whose play the prior two nights against George Mason and Boston College helped get West Virginia to the championship game.
In tonight’s matchup of top point guards, Staten and Boatright each made 6 of 14 field goals, but Staten was nine of 12 from the free throw line, handed out three assists, and went about his business without feeling the need to make a demonstration each time he made a good play.
Staten also got plenty of help from his teammates, starting right from the opening tip when Boatright got his pocked picked by Jonathan Holton that led to Holton’s driving layup and conventional three-point play.
The Mountaineers (5-0) never trailed and continued to use suffocating full-court pressure to increase their lead to 10, 32-22, with 6:20 left in the first half, and then to as many as 15 by the end of the first half.
The Huskies scored the first five points of the second half and eventually reduced West Virginia’s lead to six, 50-44, on a Daniel Hamilton basket, but Gary Browne’s driving layup ended West Virginia’s scoring drought and WVU was able to keep its lead in the 8-to-10-point range for most of the second half – with several of West Virginia’s points down the stretch coming from Staten either on short jumpers or at the free throw line.
"I decided it was time to put the ball in the hands of the guy who is supposed to have it (Staten)," said Huggins.
Late in the game, with West Virginia running clock and enjoying an 11-point lead, Huggins had the floor spread with Staten isolated one-on-one against Boatright. With the shot clock winding down, Staten took off right past Boatright toward the basket, pulled up in the lane and lofted a soft jumper over the rim and into the basket to give the Mountaineers a 13-point lead.
The next time down the floor Connecticut coach Kevin Ollie had Terrence Samuel guarding Staten.
Holton contributed 12 points and five rebounds, and freshman guard Daxter Miles Jr. contributed 10 points on 4 of 6 shooting. Browne, playing in front of the hometown crowd, scored 9 points off the bench and made a couple of big free throws late in the game.
Boatright led the Huskies (4-1) with 17 points. Hamilton added 15 and Kentan Facey scored 10.
"I think the press really affected their shooting," said Huggins. "They've shot the ball really well. Hamilton was 2 for 4 from 3, but Boatright was 0 for 4 from 3, Sam Cassell Jr. was 1 for 6 and those guys shoot the ball now."
Tonight’s win over the 17th-ranked Huskies was West Virginia’s first win over a ranked non-conference opponent since beating eighth-ranked Purdue at the WVU Coliseum back on Jan. 16, 2011.
West Virginia will fly from San Juan to Charleston to get ready for Wednesday night’s game against VMI at the Charleston Civic Center.
Perhaps by the time the Mountaineers arrive in Charleston sometime on Monday, West Virginia will find itself in this week’s Top 25 after tonight’s victory over a “brand name” like Connecticut.
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