West Virginia completes upset over No. 15 Duke with just five players available in second half

After six players were ejected following the second quarter, down to just five available bodies, West Virginia pulled off an improbable upset over No. 15 Duke, 57-49, on Friday night at the Greenbrier Tipoff in West Virginia. 

“The grit, the perseverance and the toughness,” head coach Mark Kellogg told On3 of what impressed him most about his group’s efforts. “You see it in sports every once in a while when something happens and the team rallies and you start to believe.” 

At the conclusion of the first half, Duke forward Jordan Wood blocked West Virginia guard Jordan Harrison’s shot, and Harrison took exception. The two started shoving and were ejected for fighting as a result.

During the altercation, five Mountaineers players came off the bench. By rule, that resulted in their ejections from the game and left the program with just five available players for the final two quarters of action. 

West Virginia’s Jordan Harrison, Gia Cooke, Kierra Wheeler, Jordan Thomas, Carter McCray and Madison Parrish, who combined for 51 points per game prior to Friday, were all ejected. 

Kellogg told On3 that by the time the penalties were decided, he had just two minutes to talk it through with his team. The Mountaineers trailed Duke 23-20 at halftime, but took control of the game despite being shorthanded and led 44-32 entering the fourth quarter. 

“Every timeout, I kept writing ‘Believe and breathe…,’” Kellogg told On3. “When there was about a minute and a half left or something, maybe I took a quick little glance and thought, ‘I think this is about to happen.’”

West Virginia is a team that was largely underestimated heading into the 2025-26 season despite going to three consecutive NCAA Tournaments. 

“I don’t want this to define our season, but if people continue to believe in what we’re doing and notice what we’ve done in the past and how close we are, then that’s what we want,” Kellogg said.

West Virginia is now undefeated with a 4-0 record, while Duke, who was No. 7 in the AP Preseason Poll, is now 2-2 with losses to Baylor and West Virginia.