West Virginia traveled to Ames to take on the No. 6 ranked Iowa State Cyclones this afternoon.
The Mountaineers started the game off hot, jumping out to an 11-2 lead after starting out 3-3 from beyond the arc. Early turnovers for the Mountaineers would prove to be the story for the rest of the game as West Virginia finished the game with 23 turnovers, which Iowa State capitalized on, scoring 29 points off turnovers, while West Virginia only had eight points off Iowa State’s 13 turnovers.
Both teams traded baskets before Iowa State started to pull away late in the first half. With nine minutes to go Iowa State held a 21-19 lead, which then turned into a 31-21 lead within the next four minutes.
Kobe Johnson helped keep the Mountaineers deficit manageable, scoring five of the team’s final nine first half points, sending both teams to the locker room with the Cyclones holding a 40-30 lead.
In the second half the Mountaineers continued to play the game close, going on to tie the game at 48 after a converted and-1 by Josiah Harris. Iowa State answered with a layup, before Kobe Johnson knocked down a three to give the Mountaineers their first lead since early in the first half.
After taking the lead Iowa State would go on a 14-0 run to give them a 64-51 lead before West Virginia got themselves back on the board after a Kerr Kriisa three pointer.
West Virginia started to pull themself back into the game, finding themselves down seven with 45 seconds remaining, but opted to not foul and instead go for the stop. West Virginia got the stop they wanted but could not get the rebound which allowed the clock to run out, giving Iowa State the 71-64 win.
The Mountaineers will be in action again on Monday as they travel to Manhattan to take on Kansas State. That game is set to tip off at 7:00 and will be aired on ESPN2.
