(Photo by Gus Schlomer – The Voice of Motown)
Morgantown, West Virginia – Today, the (13-8) West Virginia Mountaineers return home to take on the 14th-ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders (17-5) in Morgantown.
Now in the midst of a five-game losing streak, the Mountaineers will be faced with the uphill battle of conquering a team that defeated them earlier in the season in Lubbock, 78-65. Unfortunately for Bob Huggins’ crew, they will likely have to do so without their best player, senior guard Taz Sherman (18.9 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists per game), who is in concussion protocols, according to the head coach.
Texas Tech is one of the best defenses in the entire nation and they are outstanding at forcing turnovers. In addition, the Red Raiders are a superior rebounding team to the Mountaineers this season. In order for West Virginia to be competitive, they will need to limit turnovers, find ways to score without Taz Sherman and do far better on the boards than they did against Texas Tech earlier in the season in Lubbock.
Things will not get much easier for West Virginia following today’s matchup, as they will face yet another top 25 team at home on Tuesday in Iowa State. If things are to begin to turnaround for WVU, today’s matchup is pivotal and now a must win.
Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. with the broadcast set to take place on ESPN.
