West Virginia got a game-high 26 points from the Big 12's leading scorer Javon Small, but it was Joseph Yesufu's 18 points coming off the bench that really made the difference in the Mountaineers' 78-70 victory over Colorado at the CU Events Center in Boulder, Colorado.
 
Yesufu's 18 points came on 6 of 9 shooting, including 4 of 5 from the free throw line, with a pair of 3-pointers.
 
It was West Virginia's first ever visit to the CU Events Center, some 1,481 miles from Morgantown, West Virginia, and 5,430 feet above sea level.
 
"It was a strange game," West Virginia coach Darian DeVries said afterward. "I thought the first half we had a nice half. It was perfect, but we kind of controlled the half and were able to create some turnovers and got a little ball movement.
 
"I thought they did a nice job in the second half. They got us a little stagnant with their switching and we kind of settled a little bit, and as the game went on, we got a little fatigued as well," DeVries said.
 
Small (17) and Yesufu (13) combined to score 30 of West Virginia's 38 second-half points after the Mountaineers led 40-29 at halftime. Except for 18 seconds, West Virginia led for the entire game, but it got a little hairy in the second half when the Mountaineers got into foul trouble and the Colorado altitude began to wear down an undermanned WVU team.
 
Small came out on fire in the second half, knocking downs 3s at 18:43, 18:02 and 17:28 to give the Mountaineers their biggest lead of the game, 49-35. 
 
But Colorado clawed back into it by getting to the free throw line.
 
The Buffs shot 28 free throws after intermission, making 24, and as a result, West Virginia lost two of its key players to fouls - Sincere Harris with 5:28 left and then Eduardo Andre with 1:30 to go.
 
That meant WVU had to finish the game with 6-foot-8 Toby Okani and 6-foot-6 Amani Hansberry the two tallest players on the floor.
 
It was Yesufu who came up with two critical big baskets, the first a driving layup right before Andre fouled out and then another with 1:23 left to keep it a two-possession game.
 
Yesufu and Small got the lead back to 10 with free throws, and then Hansberry iced it with two more charities with 18 seconds left.
 
"I thought Joe had a huge second half for us," DeVries said. "He's done a great job of continuing to keep himself ready and waiting for that opportunity and we needed his speed and his ability to get to the rim in the second half.
 
West Virginia, which shot 50% from the floor in the first half, cooled off a bit in the second half and finished the game connecting on 45.5% of its field goals (25 of 55).
 
Small's game-high 26 consisted of just 6 of 17 shooting, but he made 4 of 10 from 3-point range and was 10 of 12 at the free throw line. It's the seventh time he's scored more than 20 points in his last 12 games.
 
The Mountaineers also got 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting from Andre before he exited the game. The senior grabbed four rebounds and made a team-high four steals in a strong all-around performance.
 
Freshman Jonathan Powell contributed 10 points, all of those coming in the first half.
 
Colorado, which falls to 9-6 overall and 0-4 in Big 12 play, got 23 points from Julian Hammond III. Assane Diop was the only other Buff to reach double figures with 13.
 
"To Colorado's credit, they kept coming at us with fresh legs and you could start to see it wearing on us a little bit," DeVries said.
 
Most of the specialty stats were close except for points off turnovers, where West Virginia had a 12 to 2 edge. Colorado turned the ball over 14 times compared to just seven for West Virginia.
 
Today's victory gives West Virginia (12-3, 3-1) two conference road wins for the first time since 2023, and matches its league road win totals of the 2023-24 seasons combined. West Virginia won twice on the road in 2023 and failed to win a Big 12 away game last year.
 
"I don't care how we get it done, just get it done," DeVries said. "Overall, a great team effort and road wins don't come easy, and this was certainly an example of that."
 
WVU remains on the road to play at 12^th-ranked Houston on Wednesday night. The Cougars defeated Kansas State 87-57 yesterday in Manhattan, Kansas.