In the Big 12, life can come at you fast. In a league that deep teams can experience the highest of highs and the lowest of lows in pretty rapid succession.
West Virginia found that out firsthand after an upset win over No. 2 Iowa State, the Mountaineers couldn’t find the answers in a 65-57 home loss to Arizona State just three days later.
It’s a Sun Devils team that had started 1-5 in league play prior to the matchup but was able to frustrate the Mountaineers on the offensive end of the floor holding them to just 31-percent and an abysmal 14-percent from three on 29 attempts.
The Arizona State defense had something to do with that especially making it difficult for senior guard Javon Small to get loose in the halfcourt, but there were opportunities for others at times that simply didn’t go through the nets in key situations in the game.
“We had good shots; they just didn’t fall. Kept on shooting and that’s what we go by just keep on believing in each other, but shots didn’t fall,” freshman guard Jonathan Powell said.
Meanwhile, on the offensive end Arizona State shot 48-percent including 61.5-percent in the second half as West Virginia wasn’t able to get enough stops to complete a furious comeback attempt. That included a press that was able to generate some energy to help the Mountaineers get back into the game.
The defensive end has been a catalyst for this team at times this season, but the Mountaineers couldn’t get enough of them in this one, especially in critical possessions late in the game.
“On a night where you go 4-29 from three it’s still our defense has got to be what carries us and in the second half they shoot 61-percent that’s not good enough. I know that’s what we can do on a nightly basis, and we didn’t get that accomplished tonight,” head coach Darian DeVries said.
Throw that on top of a rebounding edge that favored the Sun Devils 46-28, including 14 of those on the offensive end of the floor, and it was a recipe for an upset.
“Big 12 you don’t know who’s going to win the game. It’s going to be a battle all night and we just didn’t bring it today. We’re going to go back in the lab and correct things,” sophomore guard Sencire Harris said.
The good news is that West Virginia won’t have to wait too long for their next crack at it with a road trip to Kansas State up next on the schedule. But there will be some time to rest up and get ready for that one considering there is some extra time to prepare.
Prior to Tuesday the Mountaineers had done an excellent job of avoiding the letdowns after big wins and have responded well after every loss this season.
West Virginia will now have the opportunity to showcase its ability to do that again after the frustrating home performance.
“We didn’t play the way we needed to play tonight and that’s what it is. We’ll get some rest tomorrow and hopefully, we’ll come back with a much better edge on Thursday to get back to the way we want to play,” DeVries said.
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