Devin Williams added 12 points and six boards for West Virginia (8-1), which grabbed 16 offensive rebounds in the contest. Jonathan Holton added 10 points, five rebounds and three blocks before fouling out.

Chad Jackson led Northern Kentucky (3-5) with 12 points and nine rebounds, while Jordan Jackson added 10 points and six boards. The Norse were hurt by 2-of-20 shooting from 3-point range and 14-of-23 accuracy from the free-throw line.

Things started slow for both teams, with the two combining for 3-of-12 shooting, two missed free throws and two turnovers by the first media timeout, which saw Northern Kentucky leading 4-2. The Mountaineers were 7-of-23 and committed nine turnovers in the first half, but still were able to lead 20-17 after 20 minutes.

A different group for West Virginia came out in the second half, opening with a 13-2 run in the first 7:31 and pushing the lead to 18 on Elijah Macon's tip-in with 10:19 to play. It was a laugher from there, with the advantage getting up to as much as 26 in the closing minutes before the Norse made the final score a little more respectable.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Mountaineers connected on just 4-of-21 from 3-point range and 17-of-29 from the free-throw line. … Northern Kentucky G Tayler Persons came in leading the team with a 12.2 scoring average but finished 0-of-8 from the field and managed just three points. … West Virginia forced 20 turnovers, just below its average of 23.3 per game.