Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks
Mountaineers Return to Top 10 in AP Poll
December 14, 2020 12:56 PM | Men's Basketball, Blog
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia jumped three spots to No. 8 in this week's men's basketball Associated Press Top 25 poll, released earlier today.
The Mountaineers (6-1) are coming off an impressive 87-71 victory over Richmond on Sunday afternoon at the WVU Coliseum. The Spiders came into the game undefeated and ranked 19th, but were overcome by a Mountaineer barrage that saw West Virginia outscore Richmond 29-10 to conclude the first half.
Sophomore guard Deuce McBride scored 20 points and junior forward Derek Culver produced his 20th career double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
West Virginia returns to the Top 10 for the first time since Jan. 22, 2018 when it was ranked No. 7.
This week also marks a significant milestone in that it is the Mountaineers' 250th appearance in the AP poll, dating back to their first appearance on Dec. 26, 1950.
The Big 12 continues to be college basketball's marquee conference with three teams in this week's Top 10. Baylor (4-0) once again checks in at No. 2 while Kansas (6-1) is ranked No. 5.
Texas (5-1) is now one spot outside the Top 10 at No. 11, while 6-1 Texas Tech is ranked 14th.
Oklahoma State received 48 votes in this week's poll after improving to 6-0 with a 67-64 victory over Wichita State on Saturday.
West Virginia opens conference play this Friday night at the WVU Coliseum against Iowa State. The Cyclones are off to a 1-2 start and will face Kansas State on Tuesday night in Ames before traveling to Morgantown.
Friday's game with Iowa State will tip off at 9 p.m. and will be televised nationally on ESPNU.
Due to recent spikes of local positive cases of COVID-19 and for overall safety precautions, only essential game operations personnel and families of the players and basketball staffs will be admitted into the WVU Coliseum for games played in December.
Expected capacity at home games in January and February will be announced in the future and determined by local public health conditions at the time.
The Mountaineers (6-1) are coming off an impressive 87-71 victory over Richmond on Sunday afternoon at the WVU Coliseum. The Spiders came into the game undefeated and ranked 19th, but were overcome by a Mountaineer barrage that saw West Virginia outscore Richmond 29-10 to conclude the first half.
Sophomore guard Deuce McBride scored 20 points and junior forward Derek Culver produced his 20th career double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
West Virginia returns to the Top 10 for the first time since Jan. 22, 2018 when it was ranked No. 7.
This week also marks a significant milestone in that it is the Mountaineers' 250th appearance in the AP poll, dating back to their first appearance on Dec. 26, 1950.
The Big 12 continues to be college basketball's marquee conference with three teams in this week's Top 10. Baylor (4-0) once again checks in at No. 2 while Kansas (6-1) is ranked No. 5.
Texas (5-1) is now one spot outside the Top 10 at No. 11, while 6-1 Texas Tech is ranked 14th.
Oklahoma State received 48 votes in this week's poll after improving to 6-0 with a 67-64 victory over Wichita State on Saturday.
West Virginia opens conference play this Friday night at the WVU Coliseum against Iowa State. The Cyclones are off to a 1-2 start and will face Kansas State on Tuesday night in Ames before traveling to Morgantown.
Friday's game with Iowa State will tip off at 9 p.m. and will be televised nationally on ESPNU.
Due to recent spikes of local positive cases of COVID-19 and for overall safety precautions, only essential game operations personnel and families of the players and basketball staffs will be admitted into the WVU Coliseum for games played in December.
Expected capacity at home games in January and February will be announced in the future and determined by local public health conditions at the time.
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