In a shocking result for West Virginia’s second game of the season, the Mountaineers’ men’s basketball team fell to the Monmouth Hawks at home in the WVU Coliseum on Friday. The Hawks dominated with their shooting efficiency to defeat the Mountaineers, 73-65.
Monmouth shot 25-for-55 (45%) from the field compared to 21-for-67 (31%) shooting from the Mountaineers to beat West Virginia in Morgantown in only the second matchup of the season on the non-conference slate.
West Virginia (1-1) center Jesse Edwards slammed home a dunk underneath the basket for the game’s first points and Josiah Harris added on a wide-open three pointer to put the Mountaineers ahead 5-0 early.
Monmouth (1-1) then answered with back to back layups before another Edwards slam, making the score 7-4 five minutes into the contest.
West Virginia’s Seth Wilson then drained his first shot of the game from beyond the arc for three points but Monmouth guard Jack Collins answered with five points in two-straight Hawks possessions, knotting the game up at 10-10.
The Hawks continued their run, scoring seven-straight points to go up 17-12, including two jumpers and a layup while benefiting from WVU’s two-minute scoring drought.
Guard Kobe Johnson’s strong drive to the basket for two points put the Mountaineers back ahead after they went on their own 10-2 run, making the score 22-19 halfway through the first period.
Hawks guard Xander Rice then scored his third basket of the night from three-point range and tied it up at 22 with seven minutes left in the half.
Seven total turnovers hurt West Virginia in the first period and two empty trips to the free throw line put the Mountaineers down by five with four minutes left. Over this time, the Hawks would take advantage and put together a 8-0 run before Wilson made another jumpshot a minute later to cut the score to 27-24.
For the go-ahead score, WVU’s Quinn Slazinski would follow up his pull-up three pointer with a crisp pass on the fastbreak to Johnson, totaling five points for him in the first half and a 29-27 West Virginia lead with two minutes remaining.
In the final minute, both squads would trade scores in succession but West Virginia laid the final blow, as Edwards knocked down a fadeaway jump shot. This gave the Mountaineers a slim 33-32 lead at the halftime break.
A mid-range jumper by West Virginia and a Monmouth layup opened the second half, but then Rice and Collins would each hit a three-pointer to push the Hawks further ahead at 40-35. Slazinski answered with his own long-range shot for three points but the Mountaineers still trailed by six points five minutes into the second half.
Collins hit another three-pointer to get into double-digit scoring on the night with 13 minutes remaining, adding to his 14 point total on the night. This put Monmouth ahead by nine points and marked its largest margin of night.
West Virginia would storm back to make the Hawks lead only two points at 49-47, with two jump shots from Slazinski including a contested three-pointer. Rice would then make his appearance again in another big moment for the Hawks, scoring the next five points to retake a seven-point advantage.
With their backs against the wall in the final eight minutes, the Mountaineers failed to make the score closer after trading two-point baskets and free throws up until under five minutes to go.
Rice shredded WVU’s defense and took over in a six-minute stretch in the contest’s final 10 minutes, scoring 10 of Monmouth’s 12 points in a row to put the Hawks up by 13. He finished with 30 points on Friday. With three minutes remaining, Johnson made a three-pointer and Edwards scored a layup to bring the Mountaineers within nine points.
After three-straight missed one-and-one free throw opportunities for the Hawks, Wilson was true on an improbable three-point attempt on the other end of the floor, making the score 71-65 with 40 seconds left. However, after Monmouth converted from the free throw line late in the game, the Mountaineers were defeated.
Next, West Virginia will continue its three-game homestand to start the season, hosting the Jacksonville State Gamecocks at the WVU Coliseum on Tuesday. Tipoff on ESPN+ is set for 7 p.m.
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