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Mountaineers’ depth denies Bucknell upset

Story will be updated.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Every time Bucknell began feeling an upset vibe, West Virginia simply had too much in reserve.

Lamont West erupted out of a shooting slump, Tarik Phillip played clutch minutes late and the Mountaineers’ bench used a 32-point scoring edge to win their NCAA first-round game 86-80.

West Virginia (27-8), the No. 4 seed, avoided a repeat of last season’s 3-14 upset loss to Stephen F. Austin despite letting Bucknell erase much of a 12-point hole in the second half.

West finished with 15 points, surpassing his output from the previous six games, and Phillip scored 10 of his 16 in the final 6:22.