MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — In a tightly contested game on Friday night, West Virginia managed to fend off a spirited comeback from Massachusetts, ultimately winning 75-69. Tucker DeVries led the Mountaineers with 17 points, while Amani Hansberry contributed 16 points to the effort.

UMass found themselves trailing by 17 points at halftime but mounted a strong comeback in the second half, driven mainly by a solid defensive effort that limited West Virginia to just six successful field goals out of 24 attempts. Despite being outscored 41-30 after the break, West Virginia’s ability to maintain their lead was bolstered by their effectiveness at the free-throw line, where they converted 15 out of 18 attempts in the second half.

A key moment came during a 10-3 run from UMass, culminating in a dunk by Daniel Rivera, which narrowed the deficit to 58-49 with ten minutes left to play. With under three minutes remaining, Rivera scored again to bring UMass within eight points at 66-58 and subsequently made one of two free throws on the team’s next trip to the line. West Virginia, however, managed to ice the game by successfully sinking seven of eight free throws in the closing minute, ensuring their victory.

DeVries was efficient on offense, taking only seven shots overall but making three out of five from beyond the arc and eight of nine from the charity stripe. In addition to his points, DeVries also grabbed eight rebounds, while Hansberry secured six boards. The Mountaineers also saw contributions from Javon Small and Jonathan Powell, who scored 12 and 10 points, respectively. West Virginia improved their record to 2-0, with the team’s free-throw performance outpacing their field-goal results, making 25 out of 29 free throws compared to 21 of 57 from the field.

For UMass, Rahsool Diggins led the scoring with 19 points, followed by Rivera with 14. Both Daniel Hankins-Sanford and Jaylen Curry chipped in with 13 points each, with Hankins-Sanford pulling down 11 rebounds and Curry dishing out seven assists.

In the first half, West Virginia was particularly effective from beyond the arc, hitting five 3-pointers, four of which came in the last six minutes, allowing them to extend their lead from 29-21 to 45-28 by halftime.