Box Score Texas Tech shot a season-best 64.7 percent from 3-point distance to down No. 12 West Virginia 89-81 Wednesday night at United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas.
 
The Red Raiders played tonight like a desperate basketball team needing a victory to improve their postseason resume. Not only did Tech (13-7, 4-3) make a good portion of its shot attempts, but it also beat West Virginia at its own game by outrebounding the Mountaineers 32-23.
 
That's a 180 from the game earlier this month in Morgantown when West Virginia had a 13-board advantage in its 14-point victory.
 
Freshman guard Terrence Shannon also didn't play the first time around and his 23 points on 5-of-8 shooting played a major role in tonight's win for the Red Raiders.
 
Davide Moretti led Tech with 25 points, hitting four of his five 3-point tries, and Jahmi'us Ramsey contributed 21 on 5-of-8 shooting from behind the arc.
 
"They shot the ball extremely well," West Virginia coach Bob Huggins said during his postgame radio show. "They shot 65 percent from 3 and we shot 22. We gave them step-in shots and from day one with this group all we've talked about defensively is we do not give step-in shots – they've got to shoot it off the bounce.
 
"The two things we can't do defensively is give up straight-line drives and step-in shots and we did both of those tonight," Huggins added.
 
Overall, the Red Raiders made 11 of their 17 triple attempts and they were also deadly from the free throw line, where both teams spent a good portion of the night. Tech was 28-of-32 from the charity stripe while West Virginia made 33 of its 41 free throw attempts.
 
A combined 54 fouls, including four technical fouls, were called on both teams in a game that lasted more than two and a half hours. 
 
"It was the typical deal of we were coming into a place where they're desperate and they're going to play hard and be ready to play, and that's what our guys haven't learned yet," Huggins said. "You watch the great teams and they (show up) all of the time. If they're going to take an off day and maybe not be as good it's going to be at home against the last-place team. It's not going to be coming into a place like this."
 
West Virginia (16-4, 4-3) never led and was fighting an uphill battle for the entire game. Texas Tech had double-digit leads in both halves, including a 15-point advantage with 10:36 remaining, but WVU was able to make it a two-possession game with three minutes to go.
 
It remained two possessions when Derek Culver made two free throws with 1:27 left but West Virginia couldn't get any closer.
 
Culver's free throw shooting was the only consistent offense for West Virginia during the remaining five minutes of the game. Culver, a 57-percent free throw shooter entering tonight's game, made 14-of-16 to finish with a team-high 16 points.
 
Gabe Osabuohien chipped in with a season-high 15, Taz Sherman came off the bench to score 11, and Miles McBride and Jermaine Haley added 10 each, but West Virginia couldn't match Tech's torrid shooting.
 
The Mountaineers missed 14 of their 18 attempts from behind the arc and finished the game shooting just 38.6 percent overall. Sherman, who played 23 minutes tonight coming off the bench, was West Virginia's most consistent outside shooter hitting two-of-four from 3. Chase Harler was the only other WVU player to connect from deep by hitting two of his six tries.
 
"We can't make a big shot … and they're step-in shots," Huggins said. "Hard shots are ones when you're going really fast and you've got to get your feet together and keep them underneath of you, go up and straight down. Step-in shots are horse shots when you're out in the driveway.
 
"If we're going to be great, our perimeter guys need to make open shots."
 
Culver and Oscar Tshiebwe once again spent substantial amount of time on the bench in foul trouble, Culver in the first half when he picked up two quick fouls and Tshiebwe soon after. Tshiebwe was responsible for 17 rebounds in the win over Texas Tech in Morgantown but he only grabbed three tonight.
 
"We've got to find a way to keep our bigs out of foul trouble," Huggins said.
 
West Virginia will have a late flight back to Morgantown and following classes tomorrow, the Mountaineers will begin preparing for Saturday's game against Kansas State at the Coliseum. The Wildcats defeated West Virginia 84-68 in Manhattan just 11 days ago.
 
That game has already been announced a sellout.