West Virginia was without fifth-year senior Emmitt Matthews Jr. on Sunday against Buffalo, but that would not matter. While the Bulls kept pace with the Mountaineers throughout the first half, a strong second half performance from Jimmy Bell helped propel West Virginia to a 96-78 win.
“Obviously it took us 20 minutes to figure it out,” West Virginia guard Erik Stevenson said. “We were fortunate enough to really get hot in the second half and pull away.”
There was not a lot of defense showing up to the WVU Coliseum early on Sunday evening. Both West Virginia and Buffalo were able to hit their stride offensively in the first half.
Erik Stevenson scored the first five points for West Virginia, but Buffalo would be able to respond for the first 20 minutes.
For the first 15 minutes of the game, Buffalo would not trail by more than six points. The Bulls would be fueled by Issac Jack who scored 13 points in the first half. Buffalo would shoot 56.7% from the field in the first half, while only making one three-pointer.
The Mountaineers would also have a strong shooting performance in the first half with Stevenson leading the way. Stevenson would score 16 of his game-high 22 points in the first half, as West Virginia shot 57.1% from the field for themselves.
Late in the first half, Buffalo would tie the game at 32 with 3:18 to play. Stevenson would score five of West Virginia’s next seven points as the Mountaineers went on a 7-0 run to lead 39-32. West Virginia would then close the half with Stevenson scoring four more points, as the Mountaineers carried a 47-39 lead into halftime.
In the second half, West Virginia would lead by 10 early on, but the Bulls would storm back.
Buffalo used an 8-0 run to trail 56-55 with 14:10 to play. Minutes later, the Mountaineers led 61-60, but Tre Mitchell would start a 17-3 run for the Mountaineers.
Mitchell would be fouled, but Buffalo’s Jonnivius Smith would be assessed with a technical foul.
Mitchell would go to the line and make all four free throws, before Mitchell would then make back-to-back baskets as Mitchell was on an 8-0 run of his own. Buffalo would counter with a three-pointer, before West Virginia went on a 9-0 run.
Jimmy Bell would be a big part of that run, scoring a layup, then making the free throw after being fouled. Bell would continue to dominate down the stretch, scoring nine points in the final 5:36 of the game.
On the evening, Bell scored 18 points and secured 10 rebounds. Bell set a career-high for both points and rebounds, and recorded his first-ever double-double.
“It’s my career-high so it just feels good to go out there,” Bell said. “I know what I’m capable of on the court.”
