I called my dad at halftime and left him a message not to worry about calling me back if he went to bed early since they were getting their butts kicked. Glad I stayed awake.
My thoughts on the game:
1st half was awful and the goalie center for WVU played great. Of course we made it a little easy on him. Svi had no chance on that dunk and should have tried something else. When they finally figured out how to let him commit and then throw the lob over him for a dunk, things changed.
Dok played great. He's really developing and showing a lot of new moves around the basket. HIs dunk/technical was disappointing. Amazind dunk that could have jumpstarted something was wasted because the T. I can't complain about the call since we benefited from a similar call vs. KSU. Here's the deal, fellas: score and then act like you've been there before. That WVU guy KNOWS he was posterized, and had the technical not happened, it would have made sportscenter. Since the T also counts as a personal foul, it made his 2nd stupid foul that much more significant as it sent him to the bench.
Devonte can be credited with this win. Svi certainly contributed as did Dok. I think, however, that Devonte's spark and passion elevated everyone else's game. The other huge thing was that WVU's two best players each wound up playing with 4 fouls. That certainly reduced WVU's defensive effectiveness down the stretch.
The BIGGER news, however, is what this means to the conference race.
1.) It puts us on top and gives us a 1 game cushion vs. WVU. It's possible that OU and Tech could also lose this week, which would give us a clear (go wildcats, go longhorns). Moreover, it's entirely possible that WVU won't lose again at home, which makes this game worth even more.
2.) It changes the level of expectation within the team. They've been tested a couple of times, and have hung on. Coming back from as many as 16 in Morgantown is a huge confidence builder. WVU was #2 in the country and we won in their gym. That tells these guys that they can beat any team in the country if they execute.
3.) 3-0 on the road. If the standard thinking is "win at home, win half your road games" and "half" is 4.5 games, we only need 1-2 more road wins if we can protect home court. WVU has 2 road wins. Nobody else has more than 1. That's what I'd call "a big deal".
4.) NCAA resume: still early to talk about this, especially since the Big 12 winner SHOULD be a #1 seed, but this is a "resume builder". Beating Kentucky on a neutral court was good, losses to ranked ASU and Tech teams aren't awful, but a loss to Washington in KC certainly hurt. Winning in Morgantown is a rare thing.
Can't be happier for these guys than I am right now. Hoping they don't ignore Baylor in AFH this weekend, and blow the tiny cushion we've put in place. It would be nice to get some help from Texas and KSU this week and go into the weekend as the sole owner of the #1 position. Next week (after Baylor) we play OU in Norman which will be yet another tester. Not to get too far ahead of myself on that one, but if the team channeled last year's UK win in Lexington in this one, I hope that Devonte channels his game against Buddy Heild when he faces Trey Young. Gonna spend the week enjoying this one.
