In a game where 57 three-pointers were attempted, LSU guard Darrel Mitchell made the two most important to lead LSU to a 71-68 overtime win over No. 13 West Virginia on Saturday in Morgantown, W.Va.
Mitchell made a three to tie the game at 62 points with 23 seconds remaining in regulation, which forced overtime, where he sank the game winner with five seconds left in the extra period for the win.
The Tigers’ win on the road against a ranked opponent is their first since Feb. 14, 2004, when they defeated No. 22 Florida 73-70.
The victory also moved the Tigers into both major college basketball polls. LSU debuted at No. 25 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Poll and in The Associated Press poll on Monday.
This is the first time since Feb. 17, 2004 that the Tigers have been ranked in either poll.
LSU (3-0) made all three attempts from behind the arc in the second half and overtime and made six of its 12 three-point attempts overall. The Mountaineers (2-3) made 15 three-pointers but shot 45 percent.   
“Overall, we defended quite well,” LSU coach John Brady said during the post-game radio broadcast. “We made that team shoot 45 threes, and we didn’t give them anything off the post. I don’t think you can rely on threes, although that’s probably the best shooting team we’ll play all year.”
The Mountaineers shot 35 percent from the field, while LSU made 48 percent of its shots.
Mitchell made five of his seven three-pointers and had a game-high 26 points. He was the only player on the floor for all 45 minutes of the game. Sophomore forward Glen Davis was second in scoring for LSU with 23 points, and his 14 rebounds led all players.
LSU out-rebounded WVU 51 to 29, which Brady said was key, along with LSU’s defense. The Tigers scored 30 second-chance points, while the Mountaineers had only nine.
“It goes down to show that to go against these top-ranked teams, we have to rebound well offensively,” Mountaineers coach John Beilein said in a news release.
The Tigers opened the game with a 5-0 lead and built the advantage to 15 points with 2:17 left in the first half. LSU led 37-27 at halftime after WVU scored five unanswered points to end the half.
“Darrel and Glen gave us some good leadership,” Brady said. “We kind of lost our composure a little bit at times in the second half.”
The Mountaineers got back into the game in the second half, thanks to 24 points off of LSU turnovers. The Tigers committed 22 turnovers to the Mountaineers’ seven.
WVU claimed its first lead with 4:37 left in the second half after Johannes Herber’s three-pointer put them ahead 57-56.
The two teams traded the lead three more times and were tied four times after Herber’s three-pointer.
“This team has four starters back from a year ago, and they were two points away from the Final Four,” Brady said. “To come into their home floor – they started four seniors and a junior – and win the game was really complimentary of our players.”
The Tigers will host Houston tonight at 8 p.m. in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. The game will be televised regionally on Fox Sports.