West Virginia gets 3rd at Myrtle Beach invite

Nov 18, 2018, 11:37 pm

CONWAY, S.C. -- Junior Lamont West had seven 3-pointers and 27 points -- both career highs -- and Sagaba Konate had 15 points and nine rebounds before fouling out late, helping West Virginia beat Saint Joseph's 97-90 on Sunday for third place in the Myrtle Beach Invitational.

West made 5 of 6 3-pointers in the first half and scored 17 points to help West Virginia build a 51-49 lead. The teams combined to make 17 3-pointers in the first half and both shot over 53 percent from the field. Saint Joseph's led 64-62 before West Virginia went on a 14-5 run, capped by West's open 3-pointer in transition, for a 76-69 lead with 10 minutes to go. West made six of his first eight 3-point attempts and finished 7 of 11.

Esa Ahmad chipped in with 12 points -- all in the second half -- for West Virginia (2-2). The Mountaineers were again without James "Beetle" Bolden, who was helped off the floor in their opener with 4:43 remaining after scoring a career-high 21 points.

Lamarr Kimble, who didn't score in 29 minutes in a loss on Friday, scored a career-high 31 points for Saint Joseph's (3-2). The Hawks' leading scorer this season, Charlie Brown Jr., added 18 while battling foul trouble.

Brown picked up his fourth foul with 13:55 remaining in the second half and teammates Anthony Longpre, Taylor Funk and Pierfrancesco Oliva each had three with 12 minutes left. Brown came back in with 9:01 to go, trailing 79-69, and lasted until the 8:07 mark after picking up an offensive foul on a fast break.

West Virginia has the week off before hosting Valparaiso on Saturday. Saint Joseph's also plays Saturday at William & Mary.