Stevenson makes his mark for Best Virginia in TBT
It was the moments that unfolded to end Best Virginia’s first round TBT game against Dubois Dream that had head coach James Long pursuing Erik Stevenson to join the roster earlier this summer.
Trailing 68-67 with a target score of 70 and facing elimination before the tournament even really began, the Mountaineers alumni team was able to get a stop with Stevenson coming down with the defensive rebound.
The first-year TBT guard hit the floor hard, but the possession arrow gave Best Virginia the ball. For a minute, it seemed as if Stevenson might have been injured but he displayed his trademark toughness and was able to pick himself up off the floor to get ready for what would come next.
That’s when Stevenson went to work as he took the ball on a dribble hand-off from Kevin Jones and released a three-ball from the left wing that banged right through the back of the net.
It was a set that Long had designed for that exact situation and one that had plenty of success leading up to the game.
Ball game.
“This is why I’m texting Eric when he’s in Las Vegas to ask him to go play TBT,” Long said.
Stevenson had been playing with the San Antonio Spurs NBA Summer League team where he averaged over 8 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists per game. However, playing in TBT this summer was always a goal of his as long as the dates worked out.
Turns out that his addition was beyond critical for the No. 1 seeded team in the West Virginia regional. Stevenson finished the game with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while scoring 6 of the 8 points necessary to advance in the tournament during the Elam Ending.
It’s the exact type of situation that Stevenson wanted to find himself in and now Best Virginia will live to play another day and take on the Marshall alumni team Herd That.
It’s a good thing Long was persistent in his pursuit.
“I’m always looking for it. Not in a selfish way, but a confident way,” Stevenson said.
----------
• 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
•Like us on Facebook
