Mountaineers Climb to Victory Over Jayhawks with Commanding 85-60 Win
The West Virginia Mountaineers, ranked 25th, secured a decisive victory against the Kansas Jayhawks with a final score of 85-60. The Mountaineers' season record now stands at an impressive 25-0, while the Jayhawks fall to a less fortunate record.
From the opening quarter, the West Virginia Mountaineers established their dominance on the court at Allen Fieldhouse. The team's performance was characterized by high efficiency in shooting with a field goal percentage of fifty-four and an even more impressive three-point shooting rate of fifty percent. The Mountaineers were also successful from the free-throw line, making twelve out of fifteen attempts which translates to eighty percent accuracy.
The offensive prowess of the West Virginia team was evident as they amassed forty-four points in the paint and capitalized on turnovers by scoring twenty-one points off them. Their aggressive play led to eighteen steals which kept the Jayhawks under constant pressure throughout the game. Additionally, second-chance opportunities were seized by West Virginia as they scored fourteen points following their own missed shots.
Defensively, West Virginia was just as formidable; they pulled down thirty-four rebounds—eight offensive and twenty-three defensive—and blocked four shots over four quarters. This strong defensive showing limited Kansas' scoring opportunities and contributed significantly to maintaining a comfortable lead for most of the game.
On an individual level, players from West Virginia showed commendable teamwork with thirteen assists distributed across various scorers. Despite turning over possession eighteen times themselves, their assist-to-turnover ratio stood at 0.72—a testament to their ability to create scoring chances even when faced with setbacks.
The home team Kansas Jayhawks struggled against this robust defense put up by West Virginia. They managed only nine fast break points compared to eleven by their opponents and were outperformed in terms of assists with only four throughout all quarters combined—an indication that they found it challenging to create effective plays against West Virginia's defense.
Looking ahead for fans of The Mountaineers: The next challenge will be facing off against Cincinnati Bearcats at WVU Coliseum in Morgantown on January 3rd at 7:00 PM Eastern Time. This upcoming game will be available for viewing on ESPN+, ensuring fans won't miss any action as these two teams compete on court.