Welcome, By-Godders, to The Shotgun Throwdown, WVU’s best place for sports links, information, sophomoric humor, and daily distractions.
PRESEASON ALL-BIG 12
Baseball season starts in February for West Virginia and two Mountaineers have been selected on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team. Austin Davis is senior outfielder from Orlando, Florida. Davis was an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection last season after leading WVU with a .320 batting average. Jacob Watters is a junior pitcher from just across the state border in Bland County, Virginia. Watters, a right-handed reliever, was named to the Stopper of the Year Midseason Watch List by the National College Baseball Writers Association last season. He also had four saves for the Mountaineers and opponents hit just .165 against him.
RETURN TO WINNING WAYS
The West Virginia women’s basketball team is returning to its winning ways. The Mountaineers earned a 66-54 win over TCU on Tuesday, thanks to a double-double from junior forward Esmery Martinez. The 16-point, 10-rebound game from Martinez helped her get her third consecutive double-double.
Freshman guard JJ Quinerly came off the bench to score 13 points and dish a team-best five assists. Fifth-year senior Blessing Ejiofor also had a strong game for WVU with 11 boards.
WEST VIRGINIA ROUNDUP
- Four former West Virginia football players faced off against each other during the NFL’s Divisional Playoff Round. Offensive lineman Quinton Spain and the Cincinnati Bengals defeated linebacker David Long Jr. and the Tennessee Titans, then offensive lineman Colton McKivitz and the San Francisco 49ers got past cornerback Rasul Douglas and the Green Bay Packers.
- The West Virginia men’s basketball game against #13 Texas Tech on Saturday, February 5th, will tip off at 2:00 p.m. ET in the WVU Coliseum. The game will be nationally televised, but the specific channel has not been determined yet.
- The entire West Virginia rifle team has been selected as the WVU Student-Athletes of the Week. The #3 Mountaineers had a record-setting performance in their win at #10 Navy this past weekend.
AROUND THE BIG 12
- #5 Kansas came out on top in a double-overtime thriller on Monday night. The Jayhawks defeated #13 Texas Tech, 94-91, in a classic Big 12 game.
- #4 Baylor is rebuilding its winning streak. The Bears blew out the Kansas State men’s basketball team, 74-49, on Tuesday.
- A strong first half helped Texas coast to a 73-50 win over the TCU basketball team.
AROUND THE NCAA
- #7 UCLA came out on top in a top-ten men’s basketball battle on Tuesday night against #3 Arizona.
- #24 Illinois took control of the Big Ten basketball standings with its 56-55 win over #10 Michigan State.
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