Ahead of their first game against Missouri State on November 6th, WVU’s men’s basketball team will host George Mason in their annual charity game on Friday. Proceeds will go toward WVU Medicine Children’s.
The new tradition began in 2017 to support the Red Cross’ hurricane relief fund and quickly turned into an annual event to kick off the basketball season, typically with a win.
In five charity games, West Virginia fell only once in 2018 to Penn State. Regardless, the game always serves as an opportunity to energize the team and its fans at the Coliseum while supporting a chosen charity.
With little at risk in this full-length exhibition game, here is a look back at the its entertaining short history.
2017 vs. Albany
WVU won 98-67 in the charity game’s first edition against the Albany Great Danes. The game had an estimated crowd of 5,100 and raised $27,139.56 for the American Red Cross’ hurricane relief fund. Both teams had to receive a waiver from the NCAA in order to participate in the event.
The game’s score never really got close, as WVU led the Great Danes 47-29 after the first half. The team shot 17 three-pointers in the half, making up more than half of their 32 field goal attempts. The Mountaineers made six of these shots before going 7/18 from behind the arc in the second half. Sophomore and starting forward Lamont West made five three-pointers in the game while sophomore guard James Bolden made four of his seven long-distance shots in the contest.
The 2017 game was the only charity exhibition game to feature current Chicago Bulls point guard Jevon Carter. Carter made nine of his 10 free throws in the game and finished with 15 points, six assists, and six rebounds in 29 minutes. He tied with 6’5″ freshman Teddy Allen as the team’s third leading scorer behind Bolden’s 16 and West’s 26.
2018 vs. Penn State
After the 2017 blowout, the Mountaineers brought in a tougher opponent for the second charity game and lost to the Penn State Nittany Lions 84-82. The team raised over $22,000 for the American Red Cross in the loss.
Penn State started scoring quick, gaining a 10-0 lead to start the game. The Mountaineers quickly matched this before allowing the Nittany Lions to pull ahead once again for a 12-point lead at halftime. The Mountaineers made a fierce comeback in the second half and led 77-76 with just over two and a half minutes of play remaining in the game. Down five with 1:39 remaining, though, the Mountaineers were forced to quickly tie the game, which they did, thanks to a three-point shot from Chase Harler and layup from Esa Ahmad.
Ahmad, a senior, led the team with 25 points in the game while Harler, a junior, made three three-pointers in the game for 10 total points. James “Beetle” Bolden was unable to make his return to the charity game due to a hand injury, which gave Harler the start. Starting center, junior Sagaba Konate, did make his second charity game appearance and shined with 15 points and seven rebounds.
With the game tied, Penn State’s senior shooting guard Josh Reaves put back a missed shot from his teammate with one second remaining to avoid overtime and give West Virginia their only loss in this annual event.
2019 vs. Duquesne
The new tradition returned in 2019 with a victory over the Duquesne Dukes, 78-70. Proceeds for this game benefited the Dayton Oregon District Tragedy Fund, which was designed to assist the victims, families, and communities impacted by the August 4, 2019 mass shooting. Attendance reached 9,705 to support the cause.
West Virginia held the eight point lead they would end with since halftime with a score of 38-30. Duquesne’s Tavian Dunn-Martin led the game in scoring with 22 points on 5/11 three point shooting. As a team, the Dukes made just nine of their 31 three-point attempts in the game.
For the Mountaineers, 6’9″ freshman forward Oscar Tshiebwe led the team in his debut, posting 17 points and 14 rebounds in 27 minutes. Then-sophomore Emmitt Matthews Jr. shined in the game as well, scoring 11 points and grabbing five rebounds in 30 minutes.
Overall, West Virginia struggled just as much as Duquesne from three-point range, shooting 6/23 in the game, but the team never trailed in the victory.
2021 vs. Akron
After not having a charity exhibition game in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, West Virginia defeated the Akron Zips, 74-59. Proceeds benefited the Norma Mae Huggins Cancer Research Endowment Fund, and attendance reached 9,434.
Fifth year guard Taz Sherman broke the charity game scoring record with 29 points in the win. Sherman shot 10/14, 3/5 from three-point range, and 6/7 from the free throw line. The team shined defensively, tallying 10 total steals and 20 forced turnovers for 28 points in transition.
The Mountaineers did not shoot great in the win, with WVU going 26/58, 8/22 from three, and 14/23 from the free throw line. Nevertheless, the game served as an exciting beginning to the season and pleasant return to the charity exhibition tradition.
2022 vs. Bowling Green
The Mountaineers defeated Bowling Green 73-57 in last year’s charity exhibition, led by a combined 32 points from fifth year transfers Erik Stevenson and Emmitt Matthews Jr. Attendance reached 9,848 and once again supported the Norma Mae Huggins Cancer Research Endowment Fund.
West Virginia held Bowling Green to just 24 points in the first half and led by 10 at halftime. For Stevenson, the exhibition win was his first appearance in a West Virginia uniform, as the fifth year transferred from South Carolina after playing at Washington and Wichita State prior.
The team once again struggled from the three-point line, going 4/19 from beyond the arc. The team also had 19 turnovers in the win, but the Mountaineers would resolve these issues to a degree for a successful season and March Madness appearance.
