RECAP: Red Raiders fall to WVU in Big 12 Championship

Wednesday, March 8

Kansas City, Missouri

6 p.m.

Texas Tech Athletics

16-16,5-13Big 12

West Virginia

19-13,7-11Big 12

Texas Tech

West Virginia

RECAP: Red Raiders fall to WVU in Big 12 Championship

March 08, 2023 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score Highlights Press Conference

By: Wes Bloomquist

KANSAS CITY – Texas Tech was eliminated from the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men's Championship with a 78-62 loss to West Virginia on Wednesday in a first-round matchup at the T-Mobile Center.

The Red Raiders (16-16) jumped out to a 6-0 lead to start the game before trailing 43-35 at halftime and by as many as 21 in the second half. WVU (19-13) advances to play top-seed Kansas at 2 p.m. on Thursday in a quarterfinal game. Tech has now lost four games in a row following a four-game winning streak.

"If I'm being honest, it's a lot of weight on these kids right now," Tech interim head coach Corey Williams said. "They've been through a lot in the last week or so. And in some ways, I just feel like it caught up with them, and they wanted to win. They gave their best, but once the ball stopped falling in a little bit, it got a little bit more tougher. The hill became a lot steeper, and unfortunate we weren't able to make up the difference."

Pop Isaacs led Tech with 15 points with three 3-pointers, while Kevin Obanor and De'Vion Harmon had 14 points each. Tech finished the game 6-for-23 on 3-pointers and committed 15 turnovers. WVU had a 39-35 rebounding advantage and held a 28-22 scoring advantage in the paint. Obanor was 5-for-10 from the field and 3-for-6 on 3-pointers. Jaylon Tyson had six rebounds and five points, while Fardaws Aimaq finished with four points and four rebounds. Isaacs led Tech with four assists while Harmon finished with three assists.

"It means a lot to be a Red Raider," Obanor said. "I take pride in putting on the jersey, and we fell short. A lot of adversity, and it's a tough time right now for me, and just got to fall back on your faith and let God just narrate your path and your life."

Kedrian Johnson led WVU with 20 points, while Erik Stevenson had 18 and Emmitt Matthews scored 13. WVU finished the game 9-for-26 on 3-pointers and scored 16 points off turnovers.

WVU took a 43-35 lead into halftime after Tech led by as many as seven in the first half. Harmon was leading the Red Raiders with 10 points and three assists, while Obanor and Isaacs had eight points each. Tech was only 3-for-9 on 3-pointers in the half with Isaacs hitting two and Obanor making one. The Red Raiders had committed nine turnovers but were shooting 13-for-25 overall from the field. Stevenson led WVU with 13 points in the first half with two 3-pointers, while Johnson had 10 points and Matthews nine. WVU was only shooting 37.1 percent from the field and were just 4-for-13 on 3-pointers but had committed only three turnovers and had a 19-16 rebounding advantage.

WVU went 2-1 against Tech this season with the road teams winning in the regular season.

GAME TRACKER & NOTES

WVU won the tip but did not score on its first trip down… Tech took a 2-0 lead on an Aimaq floater in the lane off an Isaacs assist
Tech started the game on a 6-0 run with Harmon making a layup and then a pair of free throws to push the lead to six… Matthews scored WVU's first points on free throws (17:24)
Isaacs made Tech's first 3-pointer on his first shot of the night, pushing the lead to 9-2 (16:36)… It was followed by a WVU 3-pointer by Mitchell on a second-chance opportunity
Obanor threw down a dunk for his first points and a 15-9 lead (12:47)… The dunk came off the second assist of the game by Isaacs and the fourth on six makes by Tech
WVU took its first lead on a Matthews layup following a pair of Stevenson 3-pointers… It was 19-17 before Obanor answered with a tough inside basket and free throw for a 20-19 lead for Tech (10:09)
WVU was on a 7-0 run and led 31-24 after three free throws for Stevenson (5:01) before Jennings stopped the run for Tech with two free throws on the other end… Stevenson had 13 points for WVU after the free throws… The free throws were the first points for Jennings who was the seventh Red Raider to score… Tech went into the final media timeout of the first half shooting 10-for-20 from the field but had eight turnovers to only four from WVU
Obanor hit his first 3-pointer to cut WVU's lead to 38-30 with 2:43 remaining until halftime… Obanor had eight points after the shot and was 3-for-4 from the field… Tech was just 2-for-8 on 3-pointers while WVU was 3-for-11
WVU came out of halftime and scored off a Matthews layup for a 45-35 lead… Harmon scored Tech's first basket of the second half, a turnaround jumper in the lane to give him 12 points
WVU took a 53-39 lead on a Mitchell 3-pointer that came off a Tech turnover… It was WVU's sixth 3-pointer of the game and gave it a 14-2 advantage on points off turnovers
Obanor hit a 3-pointer to cut WVU's lead to 58-46 (13:14) on Tech's first 3 of the second half… Obanor had 11 points after the shot that made Tech 4-for-14 on 3-pointers
WVU would respond with a 9-0 run for a 67-46 lead after a Johnson layup before another Obanor 3-pointer stopped the run and made it 67-49 with 6:11 to play
Isaacs drilled a 3-pointer to cut WVU's lead to 70-58 with 2:49 to play…. Tech was 6-for-21 (28.6 percent) on 3s after the make that gave Isaacs 15 points