MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — It wasn’t the first time Deuce McBride had started a college basketball game. It likely won’t be his last, either.
Not after McBride scored a career-high 23 points Wednesday, in leading No. 15 West Virginia past South Dakota State, 79-71, in the opening round of the Crossover Classic at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
“Honestly, I just wanted to get the ball to my teammates and let the game come to me,” McBride said. “The first thing when you step on the floor is to compete and win. That was the only thing going through my head.”
With the victory, the Mountaineers (1-0) advance to today’s semifinals against Virginia Commonwealth, at 2:30 p.m. The game will be televised by ESPN. The Rams knocked off Utah State late Wednesday, 85-69, behind 23 points from sophomore guard Nah’Shon Hyland.
McBride started two times for the Mountaineers as a freshman, a season that was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After spending the past eight months trying to stay healthy, playing one-on-one with his older brother in Ohio and then practicing with his teammates, McBride may have solidified his role as a full-time starter this season.
“We were fortunate to have Deuce make some plays for us,” WVU head coach Bob Huggins said.
Even with McBride’s performance, along with 16 points from teammate Sean McNeil and 14 off the bench from Taz Sherman, the Mountaineers may have been fortunate to avoid an upset.
While WVU never trailed by more than five points and held a lead for all but 4:44 of the game, the Jackrabbits (0-1) answered nearly every challenge the Mountaineers threw at them.
South Dakota State was outsized down low, yet held a 24-18 rebounding advantage in the first half and outscored the Mountaineers in the paint for the game, 34-28.
“We had some very good moments,” South Dakota State head coach Eric Henderson said. “We certainly weren’t perfect, but I thought our guys did a good job of handling their size down low. We did a good job of guarding the passer and our guys fought in there against their physicality. It was a group effort, there’s no doubt that.”
South Dakota State senior forward Douglas Wilson led the Jackrabbits with 17 points and he drew seven fouls from WVU players, and it wasn’t until teammate Noah Freidel’s 3-point shot went off the rim with 1:11 remaining that the Jackrabbits seemed out of the game.
McNeil came down on WVU’s next possession following the miss and found Gabe Osabuohien open along the baseline and Osabuohien’s bucket gave the Mountaineers a 75-69 lead with 50 seconds left.
“They’re good and they’re extremely well-coached,” Huggins said of South Dakota State. “We’re a team that likes to throw it close, at least part of the time. They did a good job of packing everything in and taking away our post play. I think they’re a lot better than what our guys thought they were.”
McBride, too, may wind up being a lot better than most expectations this season. While he was just 1 of 6 from 3-point range — the Mountaineers weren’t much better as a team, shooting 8 of 32 (25%) from behind the arc — McBride made his impact felt by driving to the basket and pulling up and connecting on mid-range jump shots.
“That’s always been the main part of my game is to hit pull-up jumpers and get to the foul line and things like that,” he said. “I relied on that a lot and shots just went in today.”
McBride shared the point-guard role last season, with teammate Jordan McCabe generally getting the starting nod, but McBride playing a larger share of the minutes off the bench.
In moving in as the starter, McBride excelled at the mid-range game early and then he had a drive to the basket that saw McBride come up with a tough scoop finish for an and-one three-point play to give the Mountaineers a 37-32 halftime lead.
He capped off the game with two free throws with 13 seconds left in a second half that also saw him score in transition and after coming off a screen near the basket. For added measure, McBride added three assists, no turnovers and two steals.
“They made some shots that maybe they didn’t make in the past,” Henderson said. “Kudos to their kids. They stepped up and made some tough ones.”
WVU played much of the game without sophomore forward Oscar Tshiebwe, who picked up two early fouls in the first half and was in foul trouble throughout the game. He finished with seven points and three rebounds.
Derek Culver did most of the Mountaineers’ damage down low. In 30 minutes, Culver scored seven points, but had a game-high 14 rebounds and blocked four shots.
Huggins said it was a mixture of WVU getting away from its game plan, as well as South Dakota’s defense that kept the Mountaineers from dominating inside.
“It was probably a combination of both,” Huggins said. “We really didn’t get to scout them a whole lot. I think we just had one of their games. When I watched them, I was like, ‘Wow, these guys are good.’ “
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