KANSAS CITY, Mo. —
For a heart-stopping half-second, Dejan Kravic thought he was too late. Then, just after the ball dropped through the bucket, the buzzer sounded. Texas Tech, after squandering a 14-point lead, had a 71-69 victory over West Virginia in the opening round Wednesday night of the Big 12 tournament.
“It’s a 40-minute game, so play for the last second,” said Kravic. “I saw the ball come toward me. I thought the clock expired, so I just put it up.”
The 6-foot-11 Kravic got in front of the West Virginia big men and rebounded Josh Gray’s desperation shot, setting up the Red Raiders (11-19) for a second-round match with Big 12 regular-season champion No. 7 Kansas on Thursday.
Kravic could not remember ever getting a buzzer-beater before.
“You see it happen on TV. You never expect it to happen to you. I let out all my emotions in the locker room,” said Kravic, who totaled 10 points. “I don’t have any emotions left.”
The Red Raiders, who lost twice to West Virginia in the regular season, gave up a 14-point lead in the first half but managed to hold on for only their second victory all year away from home.
“I would rather be lucky than good,” said Texas Tech interim head coach Chris Walker. “We end up being the beneficiary of a put-back, which is great, which is rare for us, which is really good.”
Jaye Crockett’s 18 points led Texas Tech, which had lost 11 of its last 12.
West Virginia (13-19) ended its first season in the Big 12 on a seven-game losing skid, again denying coach Bob Huggins the victory he’s been needing to tie Ray Meyer for 18th on the all-time Division I winning list. Terry Henderson had 12 points for the Mountaineers, who finished with the worst record Huggins has had in 31 seasons as a head coach.
“Our credo for as long as I’ve been coaching has always been get to the ball,” said Huggins, whose 723 wins are still third among active head coaches. “It’s hard to win when you don’t get to the ball. That’s any sport, not just basketball. But for whatever reason, this is the worst that we’ve ever had at getting to the ball.”
The Mountaineers were assessed two personal fouls for taunting.
“I guess there was some talking going on,” Huggins said. “They (officials) told them to shut up and our guys said something after they were told that. But the truth of the matter is it should have never happened. You can go back and look — my guys have never done that. It’s inexcusable.”
Fighting from behind virtually the entire game, the Mountaineers cut the deficit to 64-63 on Aaric Murray’s 3-pointer and then went up 66-64 when Jabarie Hinds connected from behind the arc. Crockett’s free throw cut the West Virginia lead to 68-67 at the 1:43 mark, but with 62 seconds left, Kravic got inside for a bucket and was fouled, giving the Raiders a 69-68 lead. He missed a free throw.
Murray’s bucket was waved off when he was called for traveling, but on the other end, Kravic was called for a foul while fighting for an offensive rebound, sending Deniz Kilicli to the foul line for a one-and-one with 20.1 seconds to go. He made the first, tying the game at 69. But he missed the second and Texas Tech rebounded.
Ty Nurse hit 3 of 4 3-pointers in the opening minutes, but did not attempt another shot the rest of the game and finished with 12 points for Texas Tech. Jordan Tolbert fouled out with 11 points and Kravic totaled 10.
West Virginia got 11 points from Murray and 10 from Kilicli.
WVU Sports
Buzzer-beating follow-up lifts Texas Tech past WVU
- WVU Sports
-
-
HERTZEL COLUMN: Flying WV logo draws attention outside country
Sometimes you hit a nerve, as we did a while back when we wrote about the wide reach of West Virginia University’s flying WV logo.
It has meant a lot to a lot of people. -
Seahawks’ Bruce Irvin suspended four games
Bruce Irvin, one of only two West Virginia University defensive linemen ever to be selected in the first round of the NFL draft, will miss the first four games of the 2014 National Football League season because of a failed test for performance-enhancing drugs.
-
WVU falls to Oklahoma State, 5-0
The West Virginia University baseball dropped its fifth consecutive game with a 5-0 loss to No. 16 Oklahoma State on Friday evening at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium.
-
Reaves rejoins Carey as an assistant coach
Mike Carey has run through a lot of assistant basketball coaches during his time at West Virginia University, so it comes as no surprise that he has started repeating assistants.
Carey announced on Friday that Sharrona Reaves has returned as an assistant on his West Virginia staff. -
HERTZEL COLUMN: Opportunity to see birth of greatness
Sometimes things happen and the significance of them isn’t fully grasped immediately. So it is with the approval of the TIFF financing for a baseball stadium just off I-79 here in Morgantown.
Obviously, this a boon for the West Virginia University baseball program of Randy Mazey, which gains instant creditability. -
Musgrave ranks among top pitchers in college baseball
West Virginia University’s redshirt sophomore left-hander Harrison Musgrave’s spectacular season has reached the pinnacle of the heights a collegiate pitcher can attain as he has been named a finalist for the College Baseball Hall of Fame Pitcher of the Year Award.
-
FURFARI COLUMN: Crutchfield ‘miracle man’ at West Liberty
Jim Crutchfield, who learned the value of “aggressive defense” in basketball as a player at the old Roosevelt-Wilson High School in Clarksburg, continues to parlay that play phase with others to lead the nation in scoring as well as achieve smashing success as an NCAA Division II head coach.
-
WVU drops opener at Oklahoma State
The West Virginia University baseball team was unable to overcome an early deficit and fell 7-4 in game one against No. 16 Oklahoma State on Thursday evening at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium.
-
Musgrave may be rested against OSU
It’s been a fun ride for West Virginia University baseball this season, coming out of nowhere to reach the final weekend with a chance to win the regular-season Big 12 championship.
But coach Randy Mazey is not allowing the Mountaineers to get carried away with that thought. -
HERTZEL COLUMN: WVU Tier 3 bidding goals are ambitious
They are re-opening the bidding at West Virginia University’s athletic department for Tier 3 media rights, but judging by the vision they have shown in putting it together, this is becoming something as ambitious, if not profitable, as the national television deals in which they have a stake.
- More WVU Sports Headlines
-
HERTZEL COLUMN: Flying WV logo draws attention outside country
