BUFFALO, N.Y., March 19 (UPI) -- Devin Ebanks had 16 points and 12 rebounds in helping West Virginia overcome a slow start Friday in a 77-50 NCAA tournament first-round win over Morgan State.
The East Region No. 2-seeded Mountaineers (28-6) advanced to a second-round game Sunday against No. 10-seeded Missouri, which defeated seventh-seeded Clemson 86-78 in Friday's second game.
Morgan State (27-10) built a 10-0 lead as West Virginia missed its first 11 shots and didn't score a field goal until Ebanks hit a jumper 7:42 into the game.
But the Mountaineers shot 24-of-46 (52.1 percent) the rest of the way in what turned out to be an easy win.
West Virginia chipped away at the Bears' advantage, catching Morgan State with a Ebanks short shot that tied the score 19-19 with 7:03 to go in the half and taking its first lead on a 3-point play by Joe Mazzulla.
The Mountaineers moved to an 11-point lead by halftime and continued to stretch the lead through the second half.
Kevin Jones led West Virginia with 17 points as 12 Mountaineers put up points in the game.
Morgan State suffered through 29 percent (18-of-62) shooting. Reggie Holmes led the Bears with 12 points.
