After beginning the year without seeing much of the floor, Joseph Yesufu has seen his minutes increase in the last few weeks. With freshman guard KJ Tenner recently injured, WVU head coach Darian DeVries has turned to Yesufu for the needed boost off the bench.
“We wanted to put the ball in Joe’s (Yesufu) hands a little bit more. He does have great speed,” DeVries said after the team’s 78-70 win at Colorado on Sunday.
After only averaging four ppg (points per game) throughout the year, Yesufu scored 18 much-needed points for the Mountaineers to help propel them past the Buffaloes.
The 6-foot guard began his college career under DeVries at Drake University. In his sophomore season for the Bulldogs, he averaged 12.8 ppg, which eventually led him to transfer to Kansas to play for Bill Self.
After a couple of slow seasons with the Jayhawks and a short one-year stint at Washington St, Yesufu reunited with DeVries at West Virginia for his sixth season.
With the extent of the team’s injuries still unknown, Yesufu may continue to get more minutes and opportunities. The team could use a second key scorer behind senior guard Javon Small, who is averaging 19.8 ppg for the Mountaineers. Teams are beginning to focus on Small, opening the door for someone to step up.
West Virginia will need this scoring against a Houston team on Wednesday that has arguably the best defense in the country.
