Mark J. Terrill / AP

Xavier's Josh Duncan reacts after dunking against West Virginia on Thursday.

The Mountaineers took their first lead of the game at 51-50 on Butler’s 8-foot bank shot with 9:41 left.

There were six lead changes and four ties the remainder of regulation.

Duncan’s three-point play with 1:56 left tied it at 62, and his two free throws with 1:28 to play in the second half put Xavier up 64-62.

After that, West Virginia went cold. Alexander missed a jumper on one possession, and his teammates couldn’t connect on three rebound shots.

Nobody could score again until Alexander’s tough 15-foot bank shot with 14.2 seconds left tied it at 64. But he missed the free throw, and Lavender’s 18-footer under pressure missed to send the game into overtime.

“We won the game, West Virginia lost, but you needed a little luck when it is this tight with so much at stake,” Miller said, “and a couple of balls bounced our way.”

For a while, with the Mountaineers misfiring from everywhere, it looked like an Xavier blowout.

The Musketeers made six of their first eight 3-pointers and West Virginia missed its first eight shots.

Lavender made two 3s and assisted on another, and the Musketeers led 28-10, thanks largely to 3-for-16 shooting by the Mountaineers.

But Wellington Smith brought West Virginia back, scoring the first eight in a 10-0 run that cut it to 28-20 on Jamie Smalligan’s unlikely, awkward 12-foot bank shot with 4:05 left in the half.

West Virginia shot 33 percent for the half and 0-for-6 on 3s. Xavier made 6-of-11 on 3s.

Alexander, averaging 16.8 points per game, had two at the half on 1-of-4 shooting.

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Mark J. Terrill / AP

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