West Virginia looked like a team destined to pick up a big-time road win against No. 9 Texas Tech on Saturday. The Mountaineers led for more than 16 minutes in the first half, looking like they were in full control of the Red Raiders.
That would be until the Mountaineers had a horrible close over the final 5:07 of the first half, and that bled into the second half as the Red Raiders didn’t let up, beating WVU, 73-51 on Saturday.
West Virginia entered Saturday with a history of road success this season and they continued that to start the game.
The Mountaineers’ defense was on full display, as WVU led 24-15 thanks in large part to that defense. Texas Tech started 4-for-21 from the field, struggling to get anything going, while West Virginia dictated the pace and the score.
The Mountaineers called a timeout as Texas Tech scored five quick points and trailed 24-20 as Tech hit a three, WVU missed a layup, and then Tech scored a transition layup, forcing a Mountaineer timeout with 4:34 to play.
Out of the timeout, Amani Hansberry hit a 3-pointer for WVU and then it would be downhill from there for the remainder of the game.
Texas Tech would go on an extended run of 15-5, taking a 30-27 lead at halftime. West Virginia closed the half missing their last six shots, while Tech made six of their final nine shots from the field.
The way the final four minutes went in the first half is exactly how the entire second half went.
West Virginia missed 14 of their first 18 shots in the second half, including the first eight 3-pointers they attempted in the second half. At the same time, Texas Tech seemingly couldn’t miss, starting 10-for-17 from the field, including 3-for-6 from beyond the arc as Texas Tech led 57-39 with 6:09 to play.
Tech would have this success without Chance McMillian who was ruled out pregame and was seen in a walking boot. McMillian averages 15.1 points on the season, but the Red Raiders shared the basketball as they had four scorers reach at least 10 points.
JT Toppin was one of those scorers, who came into the game as one of the best players in the Big 12 in both scoring and rebounding. Toppin was quiet in the first half, going 3-for-9 from the field, but he flipped the script in the second half, starting 4-for-5 from the field.
West Virginia's first 3-pointer of the second half came from Jake Auer with 4:58 to play, as WVU had missed their last 12 3-pointers stretching back to the first half.
Javon Small struggled from the field for West Virginia, scoring 10 points, while he went 3-for-14 from the field. Hansberry led West Virginia in scoring 14 points, making six of his 12 shots, while he went 2-for-5 from beyond the arc.
The Mountaineers ended the second half shooting 30 percent from the field and went 2-for-11 from three. Texas Tech shot 63 percent from the field in the second half, while they went 7-for-11 from deep.
Christian Anderson scored a career-high 21 points for the Red Raiders, going 7-for-13 from the field and 5-for-8 from three. Toppin also reached the 20-point mark, scoring 22 points.
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