MOUNTAINEERS GETS PAST RUTGERS IN BIG EAST PLAY

February 23, 2009


A balanced West Virginia attack, with six players scoring eight or more points, picked up a 74-56 road win against Rutgers on Sunday afternoon.

The Mountaineers got out of the gate quickly, building a 21-4 lead, but the Scarlet Knights battled back to close the gap to within five before the half and again to within four at around the seven minute mark in the second half. However, Bob Huggins' had his Message Received (Charleston Gazette) and the Second Half Work on the Boards Keyed WVU Win (Daily Mail) at the RAC. After zero offensive rebounds in the first half, WVU corralled 15 in the second half, leading to 10 second chance points as Rebounding Ruins Rutgers (Asbury Park Press) at key points of the contest. For the game, WVU held an edge of 39-29 on the boards, with freshman Devin Ebanks posting a double-double with a team-high 14 points and 11 rebounds. Ebanks was a high-priority recruiting target of Fred Hill Jr. and the RU staff before signing with WVU.

Also, Rutgers was Done in by Da'Sean Butler - Another Jersey Kid that Got Way (NY Daily News), Wellington Smith, yet another, and Kevin Jones, a former high school teammate of current Scarlet Knights Mike Coburn and Jonathan Mitchell, who was also heavily recruited by Hill and staff. Smith and Jones Steal Show for WVU (Times West Virginian) as Smith registeres 12 points and 5 blocks and Jones adds 10 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists in 20 minutes.

Alex Ruoff and Butler each added 12, rounding out the five in double figures for the Mountaineers, who are now 8-6 in the Big East and 19-8 overall. Prior to the 2009 Big East Tournament, WVU hits the road for a date with Huggins' former school, Cincinnati, as well as a match-up against South Florida before returning home to close out the regular season with DePaul and Louisville.