title image via West Virginia Athletics
Courtesy of North Carolina Central Athletics
45
NCCU
79
Winner WVU
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| NCCU | 18 | 27 | 45 |
| WVU | 36 | 43 | 79 |
In the first-ever meeting between the two programs, the North Carolina Central University men’s basketball team fell to West Virginia University 79-45 on Tuesday evening at the WVU Coliseum.
Redshirt senior Isaac Parson had another strong game scoring 16 points as the only Eagle in double figures.
NC Central (4-8) continued its three-game road trip looking to ride momentum after last Saturday’s thrilling last-second victory at Gardner-Webb University.
West Virginia came into the game receiving votes for the AP Top-25 poll after beating two nationally ranked teams in the past four games.
The Mountaineers found a way to score early on as the Eagles switched up defenses leaving WVU trying to dissect the defense.
After jumping to a ten-point lead before the 12-minute media timeout, West Virginia started to get comfortable before NCCU crept back to single digits down 23-14 with a pair of free throws from senior wing Timmy Adedire with 5:27 remaining in the half.
WVU’s Joseph Yesufu caught fire with consecutive threes to open the lead back up to double digits.
The Eagles were down 36-18 at the end of the second half. WVU had the paint point advantage up 22-11 through the first 20 minutes.
Both teams didn’t score until about two minutes into the second period out of the break as junior guard Po’Boigh King sank three-of-four free throws before the first media timeout.
Then West Virginia extended its lead by more than 20 points and never let up. The WVU trio of Javon Small (12), Jonathan Powell (17) and Yesufu (14) led the Mountaineers to a 79-45 victory over the Eagles.
NCCU shot 33 percent from the field and was outrebounded 45-30. Junior forwards Perry Smith Jr. and Jaqai Murray each had six rebounds. The Mountaineers forced 14 turnovers scoring 19 points in return.
The Eagles will play the first game in a home-and-home series with Longwood University starting in Farmville, Va. on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 2 p.m.
Team Statistics
| Game Stats | NCCU | WVU |
|---|---|---|
| FG% | .333 | .412 |
| 3FG% | .143 | .385 |
| FT% | .579 | .800 |
| RB | 30 | 45 |
| TO | 14 | 9 |
| STL | 7 | 7 |
