MORGANTOWN, West Virginia — The Darian DeVries Era got off to a blistering hot start tonight as the West Virginia Mountaineers got up 16-0 to start the game and was up 30-6 at one point, led 46-26 at halftime and cruised to an easy win as they dominated Robert Morris, 87-59.
Senior Tucker DeVries had the first 8 points of the game and led the Mountaineers with 18 points (6-13 FG, 4-9 3PT), 2 rebounds and 2 steals. Starting point guard Javon Small, a senior transfer from Oklahoma State, had 15 points (6-11FG, 3-5 3PT) and 5 assists, and Toby Okani, a senior guard/forward had 13 points (4-6 FG) and 3 assists. Freshman guard KJ Tenner, the Tennessee High School Player of the Year last season, had 10 points (4-5 FG, 2-2 3PT) in his debut off the bench for the Mountaineers. Starting center Amani Hansberry, a transfer from Illinois, added 9 points and 12 rebounds.
PLAY OF THE GAME: Toby Okani with an incredible alley-oop dunk in the first half. Check out the highlight below!
Play of the Year (so far!) #WVU pic.twitter.com/V2psli1a3q
— The Voice of Morgantown (@voicemorgantown) November 5, 2024
The Mountaineers (1-0) are back in action this Friday, November 8 at 7:00PM at home against UMASS. West Virginia will then travel north to play the Pitt Panthers in Pittsburgh on November 15.
Observations:
- Although it’s early, Tucker DeVries and Javon Small are both really special players , and will be tough for opposing teams to stop. Both are natural scorers, are consistent from three point range and can create their own shots.
- West Virginia is not very big and will struggle defensively against big, physical teams in the Big 12 Conference. Amani Hansberry looks very solid against Robert Morris, but I do wonder how he’ll hold up against some of the best big men in the nation when conference play begins.
- I knew KJ Tenner was going to be special, but I didn’t realize it would be this early. He plays very maturely, will contribute as a freshman and could very well start for the Mountaineers as a sophomore next season.
- I like West Virginia’s grit and tenacity on defense. They knock a lot of balls away and get their hands on a lot of passes. This is a team that opposing players will have to be very careful passing against this season.
- Congratulations to new head coach Darian DeVries! Big win at home in his debut and hopefully this is the start of something special in Morgantown!
