West Virginia
West Virginia drops a double-overtime heartbreaker to Ohio State after leading by 16
West Virginia had control of Saturday night’s Cleveland Hoops Showdown for long stretches, but a game that should have been put away in the second half turned into a gut-punch finish as the Mountaineers fell 89–88 to Ohio State in double overtime in Rocket Arena.
WVU dictated the game early, controlling the pace and limiting Ohio State’s early offense. After a back-and-forth opening stretch, the Mountaineers began to separate late in the first half and took control heading into the break. Honor Huff capped the half with a three on the final possession, sending WVU to the locker room up 37–27.
That momentum carried into the second half. Brenen Lorient scored on WVU’s first possession, and the Mountaineers continued to build on the lead. West Virginia pushed the margin to 51–35 as Huff and Jackson Fields knocked down back-to-back threes for a 16-point advantage that reflected how firmly the game had tilted in the Mountaineers’ favor.
Ohio State didn’t fold, and the game gradually tightened. The Buckeyes began cutting into the lead, forcing WVU into longer possessions on both ends. Even as the margin shrank, the Mountaineers kept finding ways to respond. A technical foul on Ohio State and a brief WVU run helped slow the momentum, but the lead continued to slip as the second half moved toward the final minutes.
Ohio State erased the deficit entirely and briefly took the lead on a deep three late in the half, but Fields answered on the other end to tie the game at 68 and send it to overtime.
The first overtime followed the same pattern. Huff opened the period with a three, Ohio State answered, and neither team could gain separation. WVU had chances to end it, but Ohio State stayed close enough to force a second overtime.
The second overtime was just as tight. Chance Moore opened with free throws, Lorient knocked down a kick-out three to reclaim the lead, and Huff hit a jumper with 12.3 seconds left to put WVU back in front 88–87. Ohio State answered again, taking the lead with 3.6 seconds remaining. West Virginia never got a shot off on the final possession.
Huff led the Mountaineers with 24 points after a slow start. Lorient turned in one of his most complete performances of the season, scoring 18 points on perfect shooting and grabbing seven rebounds. Moore added 15 points,10 of which came from the foul line, while Jasper Floyd finished with 14 points and helped set the offense going early.
WVU will close the non-conference schedule on Dec. 22 inside Hope Coliseum against Mississippi Valley State. Tip-off is set for 7:00PM on ESPN+
BOONE COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) – We have a traffic alert for drivers in the Danville area of Boone County.
Starting on Friday, they should expect delays as crew perform work on the Jill Micah Hess Bridge along U.S. 119.
According to the West Virginia Department of Transportation, northbound traffic will be shifted from the slow lane to the fast lane.
This will take place from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and drivers are asked to expect delays.
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West Virginia
Community Catalyst Grant applications are open through West Virginia First Foundation through June 30 – WV MetroNews
The West Virginia First Foundation, which was established to use drug lawsuit settlement money to try to alleviate problems related to addiction, reported having access to $378.5 million in financial resources and noted that more than $34 million in grants have been awarded since the organization’s start.
The West Virginia First Foundation met for a few minutes Thursday at Ascend West Virginia in Charleston. The meeting was also available for view through streaming.
Executive Director Jonathan Board highlighted the launch of the Community Catalyst Grant application and a statewide needs assessment intended to identify service gaps.
Designed as a three-year, outcomes-driven investment, the program will support projects focused on public safety response, day report centers and generational prevention efforts. The program opened for applications on June 1 and remains open through June 30.
“We’re very encouraged by the interest and engagement so far,” Board said.
The board also approved a $4 million funding request for the Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute. The project is focused on expanding access to innovative addiction treatment and recovery support tools while building the technology and infrastructure needed to support implementation across West Virginia.
Additional details about the project and funding agreement are to be released in the coming weeks following the completion of final documentation. West Virginia First Foundation and Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute plan to issue a joint announcement once the agreement process is complete.
“They’ve gone through a very rigorous process for the correct funding,” Board said. “Their team has presented an opportunity to fund a project that will build technology, training and support systems of care needed to expand access to an innovative addiction treatment approach throughout the state of West Virginia, and really beyond.”
The West Virginia First Foundation is a non-profit organization established in 2023 to manage and distribute 72.5% of the state’s opioid settlement funds, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars. The organization is aimed at combatting the addiction crisis through grants and regional projects.
The next regular meeting of the Foundation’s Board of Directors is scheduled for Sept. 17 although it’s subject to change.
West Virginia may have come up empty-handed in two tries against North Carolina in the College World Series, but they earned the respect of their head coach, Scott Forbes, who was incredibly complimentary of the Mountaineers following Wednesday’s game.
“I want to congratulate West Virginia. A heck of a team, a heck of a run,” he opened his postgame press conference with. “They are very well coached. They just play the game the right way. It’s a credit to their coaching staff. They come at you a lot of ways. A lot of speed, deep pitching staff, so we really had to work in those two games to beat them. I’ve been in their shoes, and I know what that feels like, and it’s a stinker. But man, they got a lot to be proud of, and they should be extremely proud of how they represented their university.”
The culture at WVU is as strong as it gets
Multiple times this season, West Virginia looked like they were well on their way to a loss and were rewarded with a win because they never stopped playing hard. Everyone thinks of the two games against Kentucky in the Morgantown Regional, and rightfully so, but they also came back to win after trailing by eight against UCF and after trailing by five to BYU.
For a moment, there was a belief that the magical moment was going to come again during Wednesday’s game against Forbes’ Tar Heels. With two outs in the 7th and trailing 12-1, Armani Guzman busted his tail down the first base line to beat out a grounder to short. It ultimately led to a five-run inning for the Mountaineers, all of a sudden turning a laugher into a semi-interesting game. Gavin Kelly hit a solo home run in the 8th to make it a five-run deficit, and in the ninth, Ben Lumsden just missed a three-run shot that would have really put pressure on North Carolina, even with two outs.
To have your team still playing hard when trailing by 11 with their season likely about to come to an end, it says a lot about the character of this group, but also how deeply ingrained the culture is at WVU. There’s a reason this program has turned the corner over the last 14 or so years and is continuing to trend up. They’ve had the right people in place leading it.
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