Faced with a shot clock running low on time and maybe even lower odds of a shot going in, Erik Stevenson threw up a prayer Saturday night that was answered with a mighty swish.
The rest of the night was just Stevenson at his best, no prayers needed, except maybe for Oklahoma, which found itself on the wrong end of one of the best shooting displays inside the WVU Coliseum in quite a while.
Stevenson made 13 of his 23 attempts and added six 3-pointers on his way to a career-high 34 points, leading the Mountaineers to a 93-61 romp over the Sooners.
It was basically a must-win game for both schools, who both entered the game on the bubble for the NCAA tournament.
By the end, it was the Mountaineers (14-9, 3-7 Big 12) who came away with the better résumé thanks to the sharpshooting of Stevenson and the relentless drives to the basket from Kedrian Johnson, who finished with 16 points.
Stevenson connected on five 3-pointers in the first half alone and Johnson constantly battled through contact on his way to the rim.
It created an energy not seen in the Coliseum for quite a while, one that caught with their teammates, too.
Seth Wilson drove in a couple of 3-pointers, too, his second one giving WVU a 51-26 lead with 2:41 left in the first half.
The rout was on from there, one that was a night-and-day difference from a 77-76 loss in Norman, Okla. last month.
That loss was maybe the epitome of WVU’s early Big 12 struggles, but so much has changed since then.
WVU has knocked off two AP Top 25 teams — TCU and Auburn — since that loss and has won four of its last six with No. 13 Iowa State set to visit Morgantown on Wednesday.
That game, too, could be a tell-tale sign of whether or not the Mountaineers are ready to make a push for the NCAAs, as the Cyclones have struggled on the road this season with a 2-5 record, although Iowa State will be coming off an impressive 15-point victory over No. 8 Kansas.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma (12-11, 2-8) couldn’t keep up with the Mountaineers’ offense.
The Sooners saw their seven-game winning streak over WVU come to an end, which included three wins in the Coliseum.
Oklahoma was held to just 37% (22 of 59) from the floor, was forced into 16 turnovers and never held a lead.
Stevenson made sure of that, as he nailed his first two 3-pointers over the three minutes to give WVU a 10-2 advantage.
He had 23 points by halftime, then made his first four shots in the second half, and he’s now got himself a four-game stretch that’s tops for his career.
In games against Texas Tech, Auburn, TCU and Oklahoma, Stevenson has scored 98 points, an average of 24.5 points per game, a far cry from his Stevie-slump he said he was in last month.
No slump in this one. By the time Johnson found Mohamed Wague with a bullet pass near the rim for a dunk, Wilson was dancing in the middle of the floor during the timeout that followed and Johnson put on his assist-goggles.
It was 72-45 by that point, and there was still 9:37 remaining, but the party was on.
Joe Toussaint added nine points and James Okonkwo had 10 points and 10 rebounds off the bench for the Mountaineers, who shot 47% (30 of 64) and finished with nine 3-pointers.
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