West Virginia Holds Off UMass, 75-69

Mountaineers Win Third Straight

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - West Virginia rallied from a nine-point deficit in the second half to defeat Massachusetts 75-69 on Saturday at the WVU Coliseum for its third consecutive win.

The Mountaineers (12-3) trailed 54-45 with 10:48 remaining in the game, but they went on a 15-2 run to take a 60-56 lead with 4:38 left.

UMass (8-5) cut the deficit to one point at 70-69 with 1:06 remaining after a 3-pointer by Noah Fernandes, but West Virginia made 5 of 6 free throws in the final minute to seal the victory.

McBride Leads the Way

Erik Stevenson led the Mountaineers with 21 points, followed by Joe Toussaint with 16, Jalen Bridges with 14 and Tre Mitchell with 12.

Fernandes led the Minutemen with 22 points, followed by Matt Cross with 12 and Keon Johnson with 11.

Second Half Surge

West Virginia shot just 37.9% from the field in the first half and trailed 39-28 at halftime.

The Mountaineers came out strong in the second half, shooting 50% from the field and holding UMass to 31.6% shooting.

The victory was West Virginia's third in a row and its fourth in its last five games.

Upcoming Schedule

West Virginia will return to action on Wednesday when it hosts No. 15 Auburn in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

UMass will return to action on Tuesday when it hosts Boston College.