Javon Small leads West Virginia over UCF in season finale

Javon Small scored 25 points, Amani Hansberry had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds and West Virginia held on to defeat UCF 72-65 on Saturday in the regular-season finale for both teams.Small, a 6-foot-3 senior guard who entered as the second-leading scorer in the Big 12 at 18.2 points per game, chipped in nine assists and seven rebounds to flirt with a triple-double. The Mountaineers (19-12, 10-10 Big 12) won for the 10th time in their last 12 Senior Day games before the upcoming conference tournament at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.Small had 19 points on 7-of-16 shooting, including five 3-pointers, in the first half as West Virginia took a 47-25 lead into the break. The Mountaineers shot 47.6 percent (20 of 42), made 7 of 22 triples and collected 24 points in the paint during the opening 20 minutes.A 24-10 run pulled UCF (16-15, 7-13) within 60-49 at the 9:35 mark of the second half. Darius Johnson hit two free throws — after Sencire Harris received a technical foul — but Hansberry’s layup stopped a lengthy West Virginia scoring drought and gave the Mountaineers a 62-49 lead with 7:46 to go.Johnson’s layup closed the gap to 67-64 with 2:04 remaining, but freshman Jonathan Powell’s fifth 3-pointer came with 1:19 left and gave the Mountaineers breathing room.West Virginia, which overcame 13 second-half turnovers, enjoyed a 40-37 advantage on the boards, moving them to 11-0 this season when outrebounding their opponent.

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