Shanna Rose | WV Sports Chat
MANHATTAN, Kan. — West Virginia had multiple chances late, but the damage had already been done.
The Mountaineers dug themselves a deep second-half hole and couldn’t quite climb all the way out, falling 65-63 to Kansas State on Tuesday night at Bramlage Coliseum.
The loss dents WVU’s NCAA Tournament résumé and drops WVU to 17-13 overall and 8-9 in Big 12 play.
The Wildcats (12-18, 3-14 Big 12), were without leading scorer P.J. Haggerty and leaned on Khamari McGriff and Nate Johnson to snap its skid. McGriff scored 18 points and Johnson added 16, helping Kansas State withstand a furious late push.
The Mountaineers showed early signs of control despite a sluggish start, building a 22-15 lead late in the first half. But whatever rhythm WVU found before the break disappeared in a stunning second-half stretch.
The Wildcats ripped off a 21-0 run — its longest scoring run of the season — to turn a tight game into a 48-31 advantage with 10:53 remaining. During a key eight-minute scoring drought by the Mountaineers midway through the half, Kansas State stretched the margin to as many as 19 points, 57-39, with 7:29 to play.
Then, just as quickly, the game flipped again.
A Jasper Floyd basket sparked an 11-0 run that injected life into WVU. The Wildcats managed just one field goal over the final 8:15, allowing the Mountaineers to chip away possession by possession.
Chance Moore was at the center of the rally, finishing with 18 points. His layup, followed by two Honor Huff free throws, cut the deficit to 61-58 with 48 seconds left. When C.J. Johnson turned the ball over on the ensuing possession, WVU had a chance to tie or take the lead.
But Moore couldn’t get a close attempt to fall, and after the ball changed hands, he was forced to foul Nate Johnson with 17 seconds remaining. Johnson calmly made both free throws.
Still, the Mountaineers weren’t finished. Moore followed up a Floyd miss and was fouled by Taj Manning with seven seconds left, trimming the margin to one possession again. Moore missed the free throw, and Brenen Lorient was whistled for a foul battling for the rebound. McGriff added two more free throws to push the lead back to three.
Huff’s 3-pointer just before the buzzer capped the scoring but came too late.
“When you are playing a team that is a little down and out, you can’t give them life and you can’t give them hope and we had so many opportunities in the first half at the beginning of the game to make some plays that give you a bigger cushion,” WVU head coach Ross Hodge said.
The Mountaineers struggled offensively throughout, shooting 39.3 percent from the field and 26.1 percent from 3-point range. WVU once again left points at the free-throw line, missing seven of 16 attempts.
Moore’s 18 points led the Mountaineers, while Brenen Lorient had 14 and DJ Thomas added 12 off the bench. Huff finished with 11 points, and Treysen Eaglestaff grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds.
For Kansas State, the win was notable not just for the upset but for how it came. It marked the Wildcats’ first victory this season when scoring fewer than 81 points — and it came without Haggerty, who was a late scratch after sustaining an injury in practice.
WVU will close the regular season Friday night at home against UCF.
Photo Credi: WVU Athletics
