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No. 17 WVU breezes past Virginia Tech

Dec 31, 2014 - 5:09 AM Morgantown, WV (SportsNetwork.com) - Juwan Staten totaled 18 points as No. 17 West Virginia eased past Virginia Tech, 82-51, on Tuesday.

Gary Browne added 12 points for the Mountaineers (12-1), who received nine points and 11 rebounds from Devin Williams.

Adam Smith and Satchel Pierce notched 10 points apiece for the Hokies (8-5), whose four-game win streak came to a crashing halt.

Browne's shot from long distance opened up a 48-34 edge for West Virginia less than five minutes into the second half, punctuating a 15-4 run out of intermission. Both Staten and Browne connected twice from beyond the arc in the surge.

Jaysean Paige later made a shot from long distance and the Mountaineers opened up a 57-39 lead with 11:35 to play.

"We turned it over in the first half. I told them yesterday that I didn't think we were ready to play and we didn't have that bounce. I thought we got that bounce back in the second half," WVU coach Bob Huggins said.

A dunk from Devin Williams pushed the West Virginia advantage over 20 points for the first time, 62-41, with 8:23 remaining, and grew as high as 77-43 with 4:40 to play after Jonathan Holton converted a layup.

"Sixteen of our 25 turnovers were live ball steals that resulted in 37 points and that doesn't count their offensive rebounds. It's not just the cumulative effect physically, but mentally and emotionally," Virginia Tech coach Buzz Williams said.

The hosts led 7-0 early on and then 14-5 after a Staten triple less than five minutes in.

Nathan Adrian's layup maintained that lead at 20-11 a short time later, and though Devin Wilson's two free throws pulled Tech within 23-20 to cap a 9-3 burst, Adrian's bucket and a triple from Chase Connor moved that deficit up to eight.

Pierce's slam shrunk the visitors' gap to 31-30, but the hosts led by three at the break on a Staten jumper.

Game Notes

West Virginia has won three of its last four home dates with Virginia Tech ... Thanks to shooting better than 64 percent in the second half, the Mountaineers finished 30-of-59 from the field for the contest while converting 10-of-24 shots from beyond the arc.