Tech outgunned and outmuscled by West Virginia in 76-61 loss

The Red Raiders’ search for a Big 12 win continues. A quick start was not enough for Tech to fend off the rapid-fire West Virginia offense, as the Mountaineers walked out of Lubbock with a 76-61 win Wednesday night. The Red Raiders opened the game on an 8-0 run but the three-point shooting of the Mountaineers allowed WVU to gain the upper hand in the contest.

In a game where the Red Raiders were already without the services of big man Fardaws Aimaq, Pop Isaacs suffered an apparent right ankle injury in the second half to double-down on a stretch of bad luck for Tech.

WVU was able to overcome the slow start and was not afraid to pull the trigger from beyond the arc. The Mountaineers released an astounding 35 shots from deep, surpassing their previous game-high this season (26), and converted 10 of those tries. Despite shooting a slightly lower percentage from the field than Tech, it was the willingness to let it fly that allowed WVU to maintain the lead throughout the back half of the contest.

The aforementioned absence of Aimaq was sorely missed on the boards for the Red Raiders, who were outrebounded 44-27. Despite forcing 19 Mountaineer turnovers, Tech was unable to keep up with the three-point barrage from WVU.

Kevin Obanor put up his best performance since the Kansas game Jan. 3, and he chipped in a team-high 20 on 7-13 shooting from the field.

The Mountaineers also thrived in their opportunities given at the foul line, where they put up a 28-35 performance from the charity stripe. Joe Toussaint provided 12 of those free-throw makes en route to a 22-point performance.

The Red Raiders get a much needed break from the daunting Big 12 gauntlet and will look forward to a trip to Baton Rouge to take on LSU Saturday at 1 p.m.