Saturday, December 24, 2011

Pierre Jackson Lifts Baylor Past Kevin Jones and West Virginia, in OT, 83-81

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, December 23, 2011

Reserve guard Pierre Jackson scored the last five points in regulation, including a 3-pointer with 20 seconds left to send the game into overtime and scored the first three points in overtime with another bomb from beyond the arc as the #6 Baylor Bears were pressed into an extra session by West Virginia, finally emerging with the 83-81 OT win, in Las Vegas.

Jackson, a 5'10" Las Vegas native put on a show back in his hometown, scoring a career high 23 points on 9-for-16 shooting (4-for-7 from 3-point range) to go with five rebounds, four assists and three steals, helping to keep the Bears undefeated at 12-0.

For West Virginia, a 9-3 team that didn't receive a single vote in the latest AP Top 25 poll, the narrow loss was bittersweet, at least proving that the Mountaineers could go toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the country.

They wouldn't have done it without the monster performance of Kevin Jones, who was simply unstoppable in the paint, scoring a game high 26 points and ripping down 17 rebounds. Jones was 13-for-21 from the field, including a pair of three pointers. His board work included six offensive rebounds.

Jones, who averages a double-double (20.4, 11.5) had his eighth of the year. Amazingly, neither his point nor rebound total was a season high for the 6'8" senior. He had 18 rebounds in a loss to Kent State on November 15th, then scored 29 two nights later in a 97-62 win over Alcorn State.

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