Javon Small scored 31 points to lead unranked West Virginia to an 86–78 win in overtime against No. 3 Gonzaga in the quarterfinal round of the Battle 4 Atlantis on Wednesday.
The Bulldogs were viewed as a favorite to win the preseason tournament and led 39–31 at halftime. Yet after Gonzaga took a 43–33 lead early in the second half, the Mountaineers went on a 10–0 run to tie the game, finished off by a 3-pointer from Amani Hansberry. West Virginia continued the onslaught to take a 50–47 lead.
From there, the game was a back-and-forth affair. The Mountaineers went on top 58–53, but Gonzaga quickly answered with a 3 from Nolan Hickman. The Bulldogs appeared to take control of the game on a Braden Huff jump shot with 1:52 remaining in regulation and took a 71–65 lead with 25 seconds left.
However, a 3-pointer from Tucker DeVries closed the margin to 71–69 for West Virginia. DeVries wasn’t finished from there, getting a steal and drawing a foul. He made two free throws to tie the game at 71–71 with five seconds remaining in regulation. Gonzaga couldn’t get a shot off at the end, putting the game into overtime.
In the extra period, West Virginia built its lead at the foul line with Toby Okani and Hansberry each making two free throws to go on top 77–73. A layup from Small and two more free throws by Sencire Harris gave the Mountaineers an 81–75 lead with 1:04 left.
Harris followed up to essentially put the game away with a steal and dunk for an 81–76 margin. And two final free throws by DeVries gave West Virginia the winning 86–78 score.
DeVries scored 16 points for the Mountaineers, who improved to 4–1 with the victory. Hansberry added 19 points and eight rebounds.
Huff scored 19 points to lead Gonzaga, followed by 16 from Khalif Battle and 13 by HIckman. Ryan Nembhard notched 12 assists for the Bulldogs.
Gonzaga lost its first game of the season after beating Baylor, Arizona State and San Diego State on their way to a 5–0 start. The Bulldogs’ defeat continued a difficult week for top five teams, joining No. 2 UConn (who lost to Memphis and Colorado) and No. 5 Iowa State (losing to No. 4 Auburn) in losing during preseason holiday tournaments.
