WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – Unbeaten and No. 1-ranked West Liberty showed no ill effects from its three-week layoffMonday night as the Black and Gold sprinted off to a 127-88 victory against West Virginia State at the ASRC.

Coach Jim Crutchfield's Hilltoppers (11-0, 5-0) shot better than 60 percent (17-of-28) from behind the 3-point arc and placed seven players in double figures against a game but outmanned swarm of Yellow Jackets (4-6, 2-3).

West Liberty also shot better than 50 percent from the floor (46-of-82, .561) for the eighth time this season. The defending Mountain East Conference champions are a blistering 104-1 over the past five seasons when shooting 50 percent or better.

"We have a lot of guys who can shoot the basketball," Crutchfield said. "The key for us is getting clean looks and we did a good job of that tonight with 29 assists. When the vast majority of our baskets are coming off passes, that's a very good sign."

The Hilltoppers, who never trailed, opened up a 62-44 lead at halftime and led by as many as 40 points down the stretch.

With an eye toward the long road ahead for the MEC pace-setters, Crutchfield took advantage of the lopsided margin to rest many of his starters for much of the second half.

"This is just the start of the conference grind," Crutchfield said. "We'll play 18 conference games between now andFeb. 27 so this was a good win for us tonight. Everybody got on the floor, everybody scored and nobody had to play extended minutes."

All-American senior wing Seger Bonifant once again led the way with 29 points. Bonifant, the nation's leading scorer, was a perfect 6-of-6 from the 3-point arc and 11-of-15 from the floor in just 25 minutes of action.

Devin Hoehn backed Bonifant with 20 points, Brady Arnold and Beau Justice each added 14 points off the bench with Mike Lamberti knocking down 11 markers. Zac Grossenbacher chipped in with 11 points, 8 rebounds and 4 blocks while David Dennis Jr. had 11 points and a game-high 8 assists.

Frank Webb and Markee Mazyck paced State with 28 and 26 points, respectively, while Awwal Reid added 19 points and 7 rebounds in a losing cause.

"It's a mental challenge as much as it is a physical one because there's another game in less than 48 hours," Crutchfield said. "We play in one of the toughest Division II leagues in the nation so we have to be ready to compete at a high level every time we take the court."

The Hilltoppers go on the road Wednesday night for a 7:30 p.m. game against Charleston at the Charleston Civic Center Coliseum.