MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — On the heels of another win over a top-five team and a fresh spot in the AP Top 25, the Mountaineers labored in a 65-57 loss to unranked Arizona State (11-7, 2-5).
The loss drops No. 23 WVU to 13-5 overall and 4-3 in league play.
The Mountaineers struggled offensively for much of the night, shooting 31 percent from the floor overall. From the three-point line, WVU shot 4-of-29 (13.8 percent).
“For me and my team, we had good shots. They just didn’t fall,” WVU freshman guard Jonathan Powell said. “We kept on shooting. That’s what we go by, just keep believing in one another. But shots just didn’t fall.”
Senior guard Javon Small, freshly named Big 12 Player of the Week and one of the five Oscar Robertson National Co-Players of the Week, also struggled in the loss. Small shot 2-of-11 from the floor, finishing with 14 points largely thanks to 10-of-11 shooting at the free throw line.
“We put so much on Javon that on a night that they made it hard for him to get loose and free, we’ve got to be able to find different ways to score,” said WVU head coach Darian DeVries. “That has been our struggle.”
ASU outrebounded the Mountaineers 46-28. It was WVU’s most lopsided rebounding deficit in any game this season.
West Virginia will visit Kansas State (7-10, 1-5 Big 12) Saturday.
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