NEWARK, N.J. — Devin Ebanks scored 22 points, Da’Sean Butler had 21 and Kevin Jones added 19 to lead No. 6 West Virginia to a 90-84 overtime victory over Seton Hall on Saturday, keeping the Mountaineers one of six unbeaten teams in Division I.
Ebanks had 17 rebounds and Jones grabbed 14 for the Mountaineers (10-0) in the Big East opener for both teams.
Jeremy Hazell had a career-high 41 points for the Pirates (9-2), who closed regulation with a 12-2 run to force the extra five minutes in the only game in the country Saturday involving a Division I team.
Butler hit a three-pointer 34 seconds into the overtime to give West Virginia the lead for good.
The biggest plays of the overtime belonged to Jones, a freshman forward.
Ebanks missed a jumper as the shot clock wound down with 56 seconds to play and Jones grabbed the rebound. With 32 seconds left, Jones hit a three to give West Virginia an 87-80 lead and the Pirates didn’t get closer than six points the rest of the way.
That Seton Hall even had a chance to get the game to overtime was surprising considering the Pirates finished 6 of 30 from three-point range - 4 of 19 by Hazell - and they shot less than 50 percentfrom the free-throw line (16 of 33), including going 8 of 20 from the line after halftime.
Butler’s three-point play with 57 seconds left in regulation gave the Mountaineers a 75-65 lead.
Hazell hit a three-pointer to cap a 9-0 run that brought Seton Hall within 75-74 with 15 seconds left. Butler made two free throws for a threepoint lead with 12.9 seconds left.
Hazell hit a three-pointer with 6.9 seconds left to tie it, and Ebanks missed a chance to win it when his three-point attempt bounced off the rim at the buzzer.
West Virginia has won five consecutive games in the series, including a 92-66 blowout last season.
Sports, Pages 35 on 12/27/2009