Jonathan Powell Doesn’t Miss a Beat in Starting Debut

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — There was no grand speech or last-minute advice given to Jonathan Powell before he made his first career start on Saturday.

“You’re starting,” was all first-year WVU coach Darian DeVries told the freshman before the game. “That’s it.”

That was all Powell needed to hear, evidently as his first college start went off without a hitch as he scored 14 points in WVU’s 84-61 win over Bethune-Cookman inside the WVU Coliseum.

“I thought he did great, he continues to get better every single day,” DeVries said. “What I love about JP is he gives us great effort all the time. He’s always sprinting the floor, he’s always doing his job.” 

Powell scored eight points in the first eight minutes of play as he made a layup and a pair of three-pointers. In the second half, he hit a three-pointer to slow down a hot start by the Wildcats and then supplied the dagger with a triple to go up by 19 with two minutes to play.

“He’s just going to continue to get better and better,” DeVries said. “He’s still figuring things out as a young player, but I love the confidence he plays with and I love the energy he plays with.”

After starting his career with four straight double-digit outings, Powell fell into a bit of a slump when the team took its trip to the Bahamas last month. He scored just eight points across a four-game stretch before breaking out of it with 17 against North Carolina Central on Tuesday.

“It’s always good to see it go in, but even when I’m missing my coaches and my teammates trust me and believe in my shot,” Powell said after the victory over NCCU. “But it most definitely felt good to see a couple go through.”

Powell was in the starting lineup because of the absence of Tucker DeVries, who missed his second consecutive game with an upper-body injury.

“He was excited,” Sencire Harris said of Powell. “I told him, ‘this is a golden opportunity for you, just make the most of it.’”

WVU has used two different starting lineups in the two games without DeVrues, but if Powell continues to play like he did against the Wildcats, the starting spot could become his to lose.

For a related story, freshman Jonathan Powell offers a spark off the bench.