West Virginia men’s basketball defeated No. 25 Texas 76-73 on Saturday night. The Mountaineers picked up their first Big 12 win of the season, but there is good and bad to takeaway from the win.
Starts With Defense
The defense was nonexistent for West Virginia in their first two Big 12 games. Easy finishes at the rim, a lot of touches in the paint, and some level of dysfunction throughout. That changed on Saturday, as there was a season high in turnovers forced (22), and WVU held their own in the battle of the paint.
The downside to trying to be forceful of securing the paint, was it allowed Max Abmas to go off, especially late. He scored 17 of his 32 points over the final 2:29 of the game, and he went 7 for 13 from three. Outside of him though, Texas was just 2 for 9 from long range.
Suemnick’s Success
Pat Suemnick has been forced to step up, and recently he has. Ever since he played well against Ohio State, he has been on a tear. On Saturday, he had two monster dunks, and finished with a career-high in points and rebounds. Suemnick’s success is something West Virginia needs.
They not only need that now with Jesse Edwards still out due to injury, but they are going to need it when Edwards returns to try and provide more stability at that position and help all of the workload be on Edwards. Suemnick seems to be embracing his role as someone who can provide energy and has a physical mindset. The offense is a bonus to what he’s been able to provide on defense and on the glass as of late.
Good On The Glass
West Virginia was really good on the boards, and there was a team effort there. Noah Farrakhan had five points as he struggled from the field, but he came down with a team-high seven rebounds.
Quinn Slazinski added a big offensive rebound late, and WVU had 10 of those on the night. In addition, WVU out-rebounded Texas 32-31 and were able to counteract Texas’ size.
Closing Thoughts
Josh Eilert says they just needed one win to hopefully try and turn the tide. Showing you can win helps a team like West Virginia, and doing it in a different way than just on offense is huge. Confidence is a real thing and if you’re the Mountaineers, you hope Saturday night builds some.
