Sherman, Culver Lead West Virginia Past TCU
Duo combines for 41 points in Mountaineers’ win
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FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- West Virginia finished the road portion of its schedule strong.
Taz Sherman scored 23 points, Derek Culver had 18 points and 14 rebounds, and the No. 10 Mountaineers beat TCU 74-66 on Tuesday night for their sixth straight road win.
West Virginia's three-game Texas road trip this week was cut short when the Big 12 announced earlier Tuesday that Thursday's game between the Mountaineers and No. 2 Baylor was canceled.
West Virginia (16-6, 9-4 Big 12) now will return home to finish the regular season in its own arena with four games over eight days. But the Mountaineers have lost two of their last three at home.
"I think we're all happy to go home," said West Virginia coach Bob Huggins. "It's nice to be able to go home and have people cheering for you."
The Mountaineers overcame a 19-point deficit to beat No. 14 Texas on Saturday before traveling by bus to Fort Worth for an extended stay prior to playing TCU. While the road trip was only two games, "it seems like a lot more with practice in between," Huggins said. "It's just good to be able to get home and sleep in your own bed."
West Virginia led nearly the entire game against the Horned Frogs thanks to Culver, who scored 15 first-half points on 6 of 8 shooting.
But Culver, who had his 11th double-double of the season, was held without a field goal in the second half and West Virginia had to turn to other shooters.
TCU (11-10, 4-8) went five minutes without a field goal spanning both halves and saw a two-point deficit balloon to 13.
After RJ Nembhard hit two jumpers and a pair of free throws to give TCU life, Sherman responded with 14 points in a four-minute span. Sherman sank a 3-pointer, was fouled and made the free throw to give the Mountaineers their largest lead, 62-46, with 11:16 remaining.
"That was dramatic," Culver said. "I know my guards are always going to heat up. Sometimes it takes them a little longer."
Although West Virginia went without a field goal over a five-minute stretch late in the game, TCU got no closer than eight points.
Miles McBride added 11 points for the Mountaineers, who have won five of their last six overall.
Nembhard led TCU with 17 points, his 18th straight game scoring in double digits. Kevin Samuel had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
BIG PICTURE
West Virginia: The Mountaineers could have a few more wins if they made more free throws. They are shooting 69% as a team for the season, which is seventh in the Big 12. They made 19 of 33 (58%) against TCU. Culver went 6 of 14 Tuesday.
"I left a lot of freebies on the line today," Culver said. "It's something I'm going to think about on the way home."
TCU: The Horned Frogs have lost three straight, eight out of their last 10 and saw a three-game home winning streak against West Virginia snapped. TCU will finish the regular season with three of its final four games on the road.
"I came here knowing it was a tough league," TCU coach Jamie Dixon said. "We're fighting. We're battling. We've got to find a way. There's no excuses."
CLOSING IN ON 900
Huggins earned his 897th career win. North Carolina's Roy Williams is just ahead at 899, three behind Bob Knight's 902 career victories.
UP NEXT
West Virginia hosts Kansas State on Saturday.
TCU plays at Iowa State on Saturday.
NO. 2 BAYLOR 77, IOWA STATE 72
WACO, Texas (AP) -- Adam Flagler scored a season-high 22 points, Jared Butler had 15 of his 18 points after halftime and No. 2 Baylor finally overcame the rust of a three-week break and Iowa State for a 77-72 victory Tuesday night, making the Bears 18-0 for the first time in school history.
The Bears (18-0, 10-0 Big 12) played for the first time since an 83-69 win at then-No. 6 Texas on Feb. 2 when they had matched the best start in school history. They then had six consecutive games postponed because of COVID-19 issues in the program.
Iowa State (2-17, 0-14) jumped out to a 15-4 lead in less than 6 1/2 minutes on a jumper by Tre Jackson. The Cyclones' biggest lead was 32-15 when Harris made his fourth 3-pointer of the game with 6:24 left in the first half.
Tyler Harris had 22 points for the Cyclones with five 3-pointers, while Rasir Bolton had 21 points and Jalen Coleman-Lands scored 13.
The Bears never led until MaCio Teague made two free throws with 4:26 left for a 66-65 advantage. They never trailed again, but needed a go-ahead basket by Teague after Jalen Coleman-Lands made a tying 3 with 2:53 left.
KANSAS STATE 62, NO. 7 OKLAHOMA 57
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) -- Mike McGuirl scored 19 points, hitting three straight 3s in the final minutes, and Kansas State took down Oklahoma.
The Sooners led by six with three minutes to play before McGuirl took over.
Davion Bradford scored 13 points and DaJuan Gordon had 11 as Kansas State (7-18, 3-13 Big 12) beat a top-10 opponent at home for the first time since topping then-No-4 Oklahoma three years ago.
Austin Reaves scored 18 of his 25 points in the second half for Oklahoma (14-6, 9-5).
NO. 14 TEXAS 75, NO. 17 KANSAS 72
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Courtney Ramey scored 15 points and made two free throws with a minute left in overtime to give Texas the lead, and the Longhorns beat Kansas.
Kansas had a chance to tie after Ramey's free throws, but Jalen Wilson lost the ball driving for a layup.
Ochai Ogbajai scored 17 points for Kansas (17-8, 11-6 Big 12), which had its five-game win streak snapped.
Kansas led by 14 points late in the first half and 11 at halftime before Texas (14-6, 8-5) rallied.
MICHIGAN STATE 81, NO. 5 ILLINOIS 72
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) -- Aaron Henry scored 20 points and Joshua Langford had 15 points and a career-high 16 rebounds to lead Michigan State past Illinois.
The Spartans (12-9, 6-9 Big Ten) earned a desperately needed quality win to bolster their chances of playing in 23 straight NCAA Tournaments.
The Fighting Illini (16-6, 12-4) had won a Big Ten-best seven straight games, putting them in contention for a No. 1 seed in college basketball's showcase that starts next month.
Trent Frazier scored 22 points for Illinois, whose star players weren't as productive as usual against a suddenly stingy defense.
NO. 8 VILLANOVA 81, ST. JOHN'S 58
VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) -- Caleb Daniels scored 17 points, and Collin Gillespie and Jermaine Samuels each had 14 to lead Villanova past St. John's.
The Wildcats (15-3, 10-2 Big East) avenged a Feb. 3 loss to the Red Storm (14-9, 8-9) in New York. St. John's has done little to build off the upset, losing three of four.
Big East scoring leader Julian Champagnie (19.8 points per game) was invisible in the first half for St. John's. He missed his first eight shots and finished the game with 16 points.
GEORGIA TECH 69, NO. 16 VIRGINIA TECH 53
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) -- Moses Wright scored 17 of his 26 points in the second half, helping Georgia Tech pull away from Virginia Tech.
Wright also grabbed 10 rebounds in the Yellow Jackets' third straight victory. They also posted back-to-back ACC road wins for the first time since 2008.
Jose Alvarado had 13 points for Georgia Tech (12-8, 8-6), and Michael Devoe finished with 12.
Keve Aluma had 12 points and 14 rebounds for Virginia Tech (14-5, 8-4). The Hokies' 53 points were a season low.
MISSISSIPPI 60, NO. 24 MISSOURI 53
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) -- Devontae Shuler scored 14 points and Mississippi beat Missouri to sweep the season series against the sputtering Tigers.
Romello White, Luis Rodriguez and Jarkel Joiner added 10 points apiece for Ole Miss (13-9, 8-7 Southeastern Conference).
Kobe Brown led Missouri (14-7, 7-7) with 12 points while Mark Smith added 11. Jeremiah Tilmon had 10 points and 10 rebounds, his seventh double-double of the season.