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Over the years, WVU has had some memorable moments in the Big 12 Tournament. From Jevon Carter nailing a half-court buzzer beater to end the half against Baylor, to freshman Emmitt Matthews’s dunk over Tariq Owens of Texas Tech, there have always been fun moments in this tournament.
WVU has had success in the Big 12 Tournament, as the Mountaineers have appeared in the title game three times, although each one resulted in a loss.
March can be a wild month, and a lot of times, that starts with conference tournaments. With WVU getting another chance at life with this tournament, let’s take a look back at the best games the Mountaineers have played in the Big 12 Tournament.
2016 Semifinal vs. Oklahoma (69-67 WVU)
Yes, this is the “Buddy Hield Game,” and quite possibly the craziest Big 12 Tournament game in recent memory.
With a spot in the Big 12 Championship on the line, No. 9 West Virginia and No. 6 Oklahoma met.
The first half showed things to come, as there was little separation between the two teams, with WVU taking a 30-29 lead into halftime.
The Mountaineers kept things going early in the second half behind Jevon Carter who scored 26 points while making six three-pointers in the game. At around the halfway point of the second half, the Mountaineers extended their lead to 10 points. The Mountaineers kept that double digit lead as they held an 11-point lead with under seven minutes to play.
Oklahoma would then go on a 12-0 run, capped by an Isaiah Cousin three-pointer to give the Sooners a 65-64 lead with 2:13 to play.
The final minute of the game is what made this contest a classic. Down by one, WVU senior Jaysean Paige made a contested jump shot from the foul line to give the Mountaineers a one-point lead with 13 seconds to go.
With a chance to take a lead in the last seconds, Oklahoma’s Christian James got the basket but missed a layup. Jonathon Holton got the rebound for WVU and drew a foul with 1.8 seconds left.
Holton missed the first free throw but made the second to give WVU a two-point lead. With one last prayer, Oklahoma inbounded the ball to their star, Buddy Hield, who had only six points on the night.
Hield caught the ball and took two dribbles to get to halfcourt. Hield hoisted the half-court shot at the buzzer and banked it in to win the game for Oklahoma, so they thought.
After all the celebration from the Oklahoma side, the officials determined the ball was still in Hield’s hand as time expired. The shot didn’t count and WVU won the game 69-67 in one of the wildest finishes WVU fans have seen.
2017 Semifinal vs. Kansas State (51-50 WVU)
This semifinal game was by no means an offensive matchup, as the two teams combined for 41 points at halftime.
The reason this game is on the list is because Kansas State led for almost all the game, yet the Mountaineers pulled out a win.
WVU went down by nine points at halftime, and the Wildcats extended their lead to 12 early in the second half.
WVU chipped away at the lead throughout the whole second half to stay within striking distance, but Kansas State kept the lead into the final minutes.
The play of the game came with 1:47 left when Tarik Phillip made a three-pointer to tie the game at 50-50.
The Mountaineers forced a stop and got the ball back with just under a minute left. Jevon Carter missed a three-pointer, but Esa Ahmad got the offensive rebound. With 24 seconds to go, Nathan Adrian missed a three-pointer, but Esa Ahmad got another offensive rebound and got fouled.
Ahmad stepped up to the foul line with 19 seconds to go and made one free throw to give WVU a late 51-50 lead. The Mountaineers forced Kansas State into a bad shot in the final seconds, which gave them a one-point win and secured them a place in the Big 12 Championship.
2019 Quarterfinal vs. Texas Tech (79-74 WVU)
After a very tough season where WVU would miss the NCAA Tournament, the Mountaineers had another opportunity with the conference tournament.
After multiple veteran players were dismissed from the team, head coach Bob Huggins turned the team over to younger players in Jordan McCabe, Derek Culver, and Emmitt Matthews.
In the first-round game, WVU defeated No.7 seeded Oklahoma after holding on in the final seconds. Down by three, Oklahoma made a shot at the buzzer, but it was ruled a two-point shot, and WVU advanced to face Texas Tech.
Texas Tech was the No. 2 seed in the tournament and ended up making the National Championship a few weeks later.
WVU got off to a fast start, as they dominated the first half. Right before halftime, freshman Emmitt Matthews stole the ball from the Red Raiders and threw down a massive and-one dunk on Texas Tech’s Tariq Owens. This gave WVU a nine-point lead and all the momentum heading into halftime.
The Mountaineers kept their lead throughout the second half, but Texas Tech came back to make things close down the stretch.
With under a minute remaining, Texas Tech’s Jarrett Culver made a layup to cut the WVU lead to one point. Culver led the Red Raiders with 26 points and 10 rebounds.
After the Culver layup, Jermaine Haley converted on an and-one layup to give WVU a four-point lead with 26 seconds left.
Jarrett Culver had an answer, as he raced down the floor and made an and-one shot to cut the lead to one-point with 23 seconds left.
After the and-one from Texas Tech, WVU made two sets of free throws to seal the game, and time ran out on the Red Raiders. The Mountaineers pulled off the improbable 79-74 upset, which was the last loss Texas Tech suffered until the National Championship game.
Freshman Emmitt Matthews had a career night and led the lay for WVU with 28 points while shooting 10-for-14 from the field.
The Mountaineers will have another opportunity to spark some madness in March when they start their journey in the Big 12 Tournament on Wednesday against Kansas State. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. and the action will be televised on ESPNU. The winner of Wednesday’s game will face the Kansas Jayhawks on Thursday.
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