Dec 15, 2024
WVU point guard Javon Small finishes off a dunk Saturday against Bethune-Cookman at the Coliseum. (Photo by Benjamin Powell/The Dominion Post)
MORGANTOWN — Darian DeVries was smiling as the words came out, so he had to be kidding.
The question: What more could you possibly expect from Javon Small?
“Well, we could get him to 30 (points),” DeVries shot back.
That was about the only thing the senior point guard didn’t accomplish Saturday, as the Mountaineers ran out to an early lead and cruised past Bethune-Cookman 84-61 inside the Coliseum.
When it was all said and done, Small led the way with a supreme effort.
He scored 27, his fifth game with more than 20 this season.
“I think he’s been great,” DeVries continued. “You can sense that it’s his team. Whether if it’s in the huddles or on the floor, especially in that second half, you can see him talking to guys. He’s willing us to win and taking games over, in the right way.”
That 27 came with both pure will and creativity. The will led Small to the free-throw line, where he was a perfect 11 of 11.
The creativity saw him fake a handoff to teammate to Toby Okani on one play, and then drove straight to the rim for a dunk.
“I just took the open dunk,” Small said.
It certainly was open.
“We were trying to run a play,” he continued. “I guess it was planned, but they made a little mistake on defense.”
And then there is the versatility that comes with Small’s game.
Points are nice — even if he didn’t reach 30 — but then Small tosses into the ring six rebounds and six assists. He blocked two shots and added a steal.
If you scroll across the box score, which consists of 15 categories, Small didn’t have a single 0 in any of them.
“I only shot four 3-pointers today, so most of my points came from the free-throw line. “Small said. “There were some easy lay-ups or floaters, but this definitely was one of my more versatile games.”
It’s the type of effort and leadership the Mountaineers (8-2) need the rest of the way, especially as guard Tucker DeVries continues to miss games with an upper-body injury.
“The news is still the same,” Darian DeVries said of his son, meaning the guard is still out indefinitely.
“I know I’ve got to do a little bit extra,” Small said. “At the same time, I’m just going to do what my team needs me to do to win.”
The Mountaineers got another team effort. Freshman Jonathan Powell earned his first start of his college career and responded with 14 points and five rebounds.
“I told him before the game, because he was excited, I told him this was a golden opportunity for you,” said WVU Sencire Harris, who had a solid performance himself with 12 points, seven rebounds and two blocks. “Even though Tucker is down, this was an opportunity and make the most of it.”
Amani Hansberry added 16 points and six rebounds, but Bethune-Cookman (2-8) did get as close as 45-39 four minutes into the second half, but Powell buried a 3-pointer and Hansberry scored on a fast break.
That was that.
“The flow got really ugly at times,” Darian DeVries said. “We got off to a great start, so I was happy about that.
“From that point on, until about the last five minutes of the game, we got stagnant. We lacked a little bit of discipline defensively.”
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