MU 75, West Virginia 53
Jan. 10, 2009 1:13 p.m.
The Marquette Golden Eagles remain undefeated in the Big East Conference.
Getting 26 points from Jerel McNeal and sparked by 52.2% shooting in the second half, MU knocked off West Virginia, 75-53, in front of an announced crowd of 17,085 at the Bradley Center on Saturday afternoon.
The 18th-ranked Golden Eagles outscored the 25th-ranked Mountaineers, 24-5, over the final 7 minutes 55 seconds to take control of the game. Dominic James added 17 points and Wesley Matthews 13 -- with all of those coming in the second half -- as MU (15-2, 4-0) ran its winning streak to seven.
MU, which grabbed the lead for good on a James banker at the 12:03 mark of the second half, used a 10-2 run to extend a 51-48 lead to 61-48 with 5:21 left.
Key in that stretch were six points from McNeal, and the fifth foul whistled on West Virginia's Da'Sean Butler, who'd torched MU for 16 points and 3 threes in the first half.
McNeal, who set an MU record with a 7-for-7 performance from the three-point line in his last home game, finished 9 for 19 from the field and 3 for 9 from beyond the arc. He also added seven rebounds and three steals, but also committed six turnovers.
James again played air-tight defense on West Virginia point guard Darryl Bryant, holding him without a point and forcing him into four turnovers. James also added seven assists and three steals with just one turnover.
MU also helped itself with a 24-for-27 (88.9%) performance from the free-throw line, a season best. West Virginia, meanwhile was just 6 for 10.
Butler, who went scoreless in the second half, led West Virginia with 16 points, while Alex Ruoff had 13. The Mountaineers shot just 35.0% for the game, thanks in large part to their 25.0% performance over the final 20 minutes.
MU was forced to play 11 minutes in the first half without Matthews, who picked up two quick fouls and was forced to the bench.
Sophomore guard Jimmy Butler was strong in Matthews' place, however, chipping in with four points and four rebounds.
A three from the right wing by Butler gave West Virginia its biggest lead of the first half at 24-17, but MU responded with a 10-2 run of its own to take its first lead of the game at 27-26 with 3:23 remaining.
The Golden Eagles were primed to go into the locker room ahead after a putback by McNeal with 36 seconds left, but a stepback three from the top of the key by Butler at the buzzer gave the Mountaineers a 31-29 advantage.
McNeal scored 11 and James eight to lead MU, with both playing 20 minutes. The Golden Eagles, who were shooting just 17.6% from the field with about 11:30 left, finished the half at 33.3%.
West Virginia shot an even 50.0%.
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