WVU Basketball
Nearly Perfect Joseph Yesufu Helps WVU Snap Losing Streak

There’s no such thing as a perfect basketball game, but Joseph Yesufu came close as West Virginia beat Cincinnati 63-50 on the road Sunday afternoon.
Yesufu, WVU’s top bench player, finished second on the team with 16 points while going a perfect 6-6 from the floor and 4-4 on three-pointers.
Yesufu’s performance helped the Mountaineers snap a three-game losing streak in which they were averaging just over 50 points per game.
“Joe came in and gave us an extra spark, another offensive player that can put the ball through the basket,” said star point guard Javon Small, who scored a game-high 19 points. “He made some really big shots down the stretch, especially going into halftime.”
Yesufu’s 16 points was his second-highest scoring output of the season. Ironically his highest-scoring game was another Big 12 road matchup on a Sunday, 18 points at Colorado on Jan. 12.
“I’ve been in college for six years so I’m kind of old,” Yesufu joked. “I have that experience of playing at different places, against different coaches, in different arenas, so I’m kind of used to everything.”
Yesufu’s scoring seemed to all come at key times for WVU. His first three-pointer came at the end of the shot clock to continue a 20-5 run in the first half. His next was with four seconds before halftime to give the Mountaineers a 15-point lead at the break.
“It was a huge shot, I feel like it got us going,” Yesufu said. “This game was a blessing for me in more ways than one. I was happy to provide a spark off the bench.”
And when West Virginia came out a little slow in the second half, it was Yesufu who helped pick things up. He made a jumper and back-to-back three-pointers as part of a 10-2 run that boosted WVU’s lead all the way up to 22 points.
“Joe’s a really good player, he does whatever the team needs him to do and today we needed him to put the ball in the basket,” Small said.
Maybe most importantly, Yesufu’s scoring helped to take some of the offensive burden off of Small’s shoulders. Yesufu scored 10 second-half points while Small only needed five.
“I thought Joe came in and gave us a huge spark off the bench,” WVU coach Darian DeVries said. “He gave us that other scorer we haven’t had as consistent the last few games.”
Yesufu and the Mountaineers will be back on the road to play at TCU Wednesday at 8 p.m.
For a related story, WVU fans happy about end of losing streak.