Despite a slow start, West Virginia came out on top in the team's season-opening game, besting Oakland 60-53.
In the game's opening minutes, the Mountaineers struggled to have plays go in their favor. The team was 2-for-9 shooting entering the under-16 timeout, and found itself working from behind.
The shooting slump grew to 2-for-12 before the Mountaineers began to find the bottom of the net, eventually narrowing their deficit to a mere three points.
However, it wouldn't be until near the five-minute mark when West Virginia would take its first lead since the opening minutes on a Taz Sherman three-pointer. The Mountaineers took advantage of an Oakland scoring slump, which spanned more than six minutes, to get back into the driver's seat.
Ultimately, West Virginia entered halftime in possession of the 27-23 lead.
The Mountaineers continued to right their wrongs in the second half, charging ahead to a comfortable lead as numerous different guys sank shots.
Eight minutes into the second half, a Sherman layup pushed the team's lead to double-digits. Then, the Mountaineers piled on.
Sean McNeil sank a three-pointer. Sherman added in a layup. West Virginia continued to move forward, building a lead as high as 17.
But Oakland wouldn't go away. The Golden Grizzlies narrowed the difference to single digits with five minutes remaining.
The effort was all for naught. West Virginia was able to stave off the late Oakland surge, winning 60-53.
Stat Attack
Sherman led the Mountaineers in scoring, finishing with 18 points. He went 7-of-18 from the field including 1-of-7 from the three-point line.
McNeil also ended the night in double-digits, scoring 11 points.
Coming off the bench, Gabe Osabuohien led in rebounds with nine.
Oakland's highest-scorer was forward Jamal Cain, who ended with 15 points.
Up Next
The Mountaineers host the rival Pitt Panthers on Friday at 8:30 p.m. The broadcast is set to be on ESPNU.
----------
• Talk about it with West Virginia fans on The Blue Lot.
• SUBSCRIBE today to stay up on the latest on Mountaineer sports and recruiting.
• Get all of our WVU videos on YouTube by subscribing to the WVSports.com Channel
• Follow us on Twitter: @WVSportsDotCom, @rivalskeenan, @JaredSerre
•Like us on Facebook
