WVU bests Baylor but must find way to 'keep pedal down'
West Virginia made things interesting in the second half, as this team tends to do from time to time.
Leading by as many as 28-points with 17 minutes left to play, the Mountaineers allowed that lead to dwindle to a dozen after a basket by Terry Maston a little under ten minutes later.
This club has given up five double-digits leads that have resulted in losses this season and allowing the Bears to go on a 16-2 run while going scoreless for over five minutes didn’t help to calm any nerves. West Virginia also got loose with the basketball with five turnovers during that span.
But this time was different. Riding a five-game winning streak, Baylor was the hottest team in the Big 12 Conference in a game that had every reason to play well.
The Mountaineers had other ideas and after a three-pointer by senior Daxter Miles swished through the net on a play he was fouled, they never looked back.
“I’m happy to win. We tried not to there for a while but I don’t know why we can’t just keep the pedal down the whole time,” head coach Bob Huggins said.
The Mountaineers led 40-18 at halftime playing highly efficient on both ends of the floor. That was especially true on the defensive end, as West Virginia played with a noticeable jump in their step and forced 12 turnovers while holding the Bears to 19-percent from the floor.
For most of the second half that simply wasn’t the case as everything seemed like a struggle at times.
“We didn’t fake the pass, put it over our head. They got a hand on a couple of them and come down and made some shots. Then we got in foul trouble and got really tentative,” Huggins said.
Finishing games has been an issue for this team all throughout the season and when you consider that five of the eight losses have come after a double-digit lead, four of those in the second half it’s been one of the biggest mysteries of the season. Effort and focus have received the blame at times, while the Mountaineers also have struggled to run offense or get stops.
Basically a formula to lose basketball games. So it is important that they did close this one out.
“I don’t know why we can’t keep the pedal down,” Huggins reiterated. “We dribble it and fall down. It’s a catastrophe.”
Sophomore Sagaba Konate was the leader of the block party for the Mountaineers, a key ingredient to the defensive effort, by recording nine blocks matching the previous record set by D’Or Fischer in 2004. As a team the visitors finished with a total of 13 blocks, one less than the all-time record set in 1982.
But Konate, who was keeping count himself and needed one more block for a triple double given the fact he had 10 points and 10 rebounds, felt he was shorted.
“He was counting. He had 10,” Huggins joked.
Konate is currently second all-time in a single season at West Virginia in blocks and brings an element in that department that hasn’t been seen in quite some time. The performance against the Bears was the eighth time this season he has recorded at least five blocks.
“After he’s blocked three or four you start looking for him. You don’t see the rim because you’re trying to figure out where he is,” Huggins said.
There also was a boost from junior forward Esa Ahmad who was as focused as he’s been since returning to the lineup against Texas Tech with 15 points. But now the goal is to get the team not only playing well together at the same time but keeping them playing that way for a full forty minutes.
“You have to be consistent,” he said.
Huggins will now hit the road to recruit today before heading home to first watch tape of Iowa State, who obliterated the Mountaineers in their first meeting in the most lopsided loss of the year 93-77.
Practice will be Thursday and Friday before tip-off at 6 p.m. Saturday.
