In Progress: Seton Hall Hanging Tough With No. 5 West Virginia

Read more at our West Virginia blog, The Smoking Musket, and our Seton Hall blog, Gonzo Ball.

Morgantown, WV (Sports Network) - Kevin Jones and Devin Ebanks each scored 16 points, and eighth-ranked West Virginia held off a furious charge by Seton Hall to grab a 75-63 victory at WVU Coliseum.

Jones added nine rebounds, while Ebanks had six boards for the Mountaineers (21-5, 10-4 Big East), who have answered a two-game losing streak with two straight wins.

Da’Sean Butler contributed with 14 points for WVU, which allowed an 18-point lead to slip to four before closing out the contest in the final moments.

Jeff Robinson had 16 points to lead Seton Hall (15-10, 6-8), which had a three-game win streak snapped. Robert Mitchell scored 10 points, while Herb Pope had nine points and 10 boards in defeat.

Jeremy Hazell, who scored 41 in the Pirates’ overtime loss to West Virginia on December 26, ended with only nine -- all in the second half.

Butler’s two free throws with 8:40 left to play gave the Mountaineers a 64-46 advantage, but Seton Hall made a game of it down the stretch by scoring 14 consecutive points.

WVU went over six minutes without a point, and Hazell’s 1-for-2 trip at the free throw line had the visitors within four points with three minutes remaining.

The Mountaineers, though, woke up just in time and went to the line on four of their next five possessions, hitting 7-of-8 shots in the process. Meanwhile, Seton Hall missed four consecutive shots, allowing West Virginia to take a 71-60 lead on a pair of Butler free throws that sealed the game with 51 seconds to play.

A 10-0 WVU run early in the first half put the home team ahead by a 16-11 margin after a Deniz Kilicki free throw with 11 minutes left. Dalton Pepper later capped a 14-4 spurt for the Mountaineers with a three-pointer for a 30-17 advantage.

West Virginia maintainted a double-digit lead down the stretch and held a 41-26 lead at halftime. In the early portion of the second half, WVU led by as much as 20.

West Virginia is now 10-2 at home, while Seton Hall is 3-6 on the road...The Mountaineers lead the all-time series, 15-11, including two wins this season...West Virginia attemped 38 free throws, making 27, while Seton Hall went to the line only 15 times, making 12.