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West Virginia entered tonights game looking for a marquee win and they got just that on Big Monday thanks to a Juwan Staten layup with 3.9 seconds left.
On a night where the #8 Jayhawks continued to fight back from sporadic Mountaineer leads and took a seemingly decisive lead starting in the early seconds of the second half.
WVU lead at the half 33-30. However, Kansas came out of the locker room and took a quick 35-33 lead with a 5-0 run in the first 43 seconds of the second half.
The Jayhawks lead until two Jevon Carter three pointers put WVU back in the lead at 60-59 with 2:27 remaining. Fouls, free throws and missed free throws would put Kansas in the lead at 61-60 with one minute left in the game.
Nathan Adrian missed a three pointer with 30.8 seconds left in the game. Kansas would go on the offensive and miss a shot which would end up being swatted out of bound by Perry Ellis. Following a WVU timeoout, WVU inbounded the ball to Juwan Staten and he would not disappoint with a sweet layup with 3.9 seconds remaining.
Staten would finish the game with 20 points (his fifth 20 point game this season) and four assists. He shot 2/3 from beyond the arc.
The Kansas football pass to a streaking Perry Ellis and his attempted layup narrowly missed as time expired. The Coliseum went bananas and the students rushed the court.
Huge shoutout to the fans that braved the rough road conditions and weather to get to the Coliseum tonight. You all were the real MVP's of tonight big victory.
After losing three of their last four games, the Mountaineers needed a big victory in their remaining tough stretch of games. WVU finally got their marquee win. The boys knew what a win tonight could do for their tournament chances and ranking.
West Virginia moves to 20-6 (8-5) on the season. The 23rd ranked Mountaineers will travel to Stillwater, Oklahoma to face #22 Oklahoma State on Saturday the 21st at 2pm. The game will air on ESPN News.