WVU turns over Texas A&M, defeats Aggies 81-77

After building a lead, No. 18 West Virginia (17-4, 5-3) held on in the second half beating Texas A&M 81-77 in the Big 12-SEC Challenge Saturday afternoon inside the Coliseum.

The Mountaineers led by as many as 19-points early in the second half, but the Aggies battled back to cut the advantage to six points before West Virginia would pull away late. It is the first win for the Mountaineers in the four-year existence of the Big 12-SEC Challenge after previously falling to Missouri, LSU and Florida.

West Virginia was led in recruiting by junior guard Jevon Carter with 20 points and 9 rebounds. Sophomore forward Esa Ahmad finished with 14 points in the game and junior guard Daxter Miles had 10 points as the other players in double figures.

Overall, the Mountaineers forced 23 total turnovers resulting in 25 points.

West Virginia got off to a quick start taking an early 8-3 lead on the backs of a pair of three-pointers, but the Aggies reeled off six straight to take the early lead. The two teams would exchange baskets over the next several minutes with the score sitting at 16-all at the 11:45 mark.

But the Mountaineers would use an 8-0 run to take a 26-18 lead nearing the eight-minute mark as West Virginia forced nine Aggies turnovers in the early makings of the game. For the second straight game, Ahmad started hot out of the gates scoring 10 of the first 26 points for the Mountaineers.

West Virginia held a 33-27 lead at the 5:00 mark as the Mountaineers continued to pressure the Aggies backcourt and create havoc getting the ball up the floor. The Mountaineers would take a 45-27 lead on the heels of a 17-0 run to seize control in the late stages of the first half but the Aggies would respond with a basket before the break to put Texas A&M down 16-points.

At halftime, the Mountaineers shot 58-percent from the floor and forced 14 total turnovers while winning the rebounding edge of the Aggies.

Miles opened the second half with a pair of threes sandwiched in-between five Texas A&M points as the score sat at 51-34 just a little over a minute and a half into play. The Mountaineers would hold a 54-36 lead at the 16-minute mark as West Virginia continued to create issues for the Aggies.

Six quick points from Texas A&M cut the West Virginia advantage to 54-42 and then the teams would trade baskets on both ends of the floor as the Aggies hit 6-12 from three-point range. The visitors would cut the lead as close as ten points at the 10:48 mark cutting the one-time deficit in half.

The Aggies would continue to trim away at the lead getting as close as 59-53 at the 9:22 mark as the Mountaineers struggled to score hitting only 28-percent of their shots in the second half after hitting nearly 60-percent in the first frame. But the Mountaineers would then go on a 5-0 run to push the lead back into double figures with a layup from junior guard Tarik Phillip and three from Carter.

The Mountaineers led 74-63 with 1:30 remaining as Carter was able to connect on several big baskets down the stretch to keep West Virginia out front despite Texas A&M center Tyler Davis scoring 18 points with 18 rebounds for the Aggies.

And while Texas A&M would edge it to as close to 79-77 down the stretch, the Mountaineers would do enough from the free throw line to ice the game.

The Mountaineers will next travel to Iowa State for a 9 p.m. tip off Tuesday.