MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) Jaysean Paige scored 18 of his 25 points after halftime, Tarik Phillip connected on a floater with 4.5 seconds left in the second overtime and West Virginia toughed out an 87-83 victory over Kansas State on Saturday in the Big 12 opener for both teams.
Phillip finished with 14 points and five assists for the Mountaineers (12-1, 1-0) and Daxter Miles Jr. had 10 points.
Two free throws by D.J. Johnson with 22 seconds left in regulation sent the game to overtime where the teams traded scores but couldn’t break the tie. The Mountaineers then used eight free throws and the big-time floater from Phillip late in the shot clock to seal the victory.
Barry Brown led Kansas State (1-3, 0-1) with 20 points on 6-of-12 shooting while Wesley Iwundu, Kamau Stokes and Dean Wade combined for 44 points on 14-of-29 shooting.
After the Wildcats extended their one-point halftime lead to six midway through second half, Paige pulled West Virginia even with 4:08 to play and then gave the visitors a 69-67 lead with 1:07 to play. Johnson forced overtime with two free throws with under 30 seconds remaining.
West Virginia’s press went against Kansas State’s defensive-minded efforts on the perimeter in the first half. The result was 24 fouls and 15 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes, in addition to a handful of calls that left coaches Bob Huggins and Bruce Weber irate.
Kansas State used an 11-1 run to take a 24-15 lead with 7:59 left in the first half. But West Virginia rattled off 12 quick points to retake the lead. A tough drive by Carlbe Ervin II gave Kansas State a 34-33 halftime lead.
TIP-INS
West Virginia: The Mountaineers have shot 40 percent or better in every game this season. . West Virginia is 138-30 under Huggins when outrebounding its opponent.
Kansas State: The Wildcats lost at home for the first time this season after an 8-0 start. ... Kansas State was 7 of 17 at the free throw line in the first half and finished 28 of 43 for the game.
UP NEXT
West Virginia: At TCU on Monday.
Kansas State: At Texas on Tuesday.