The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
16-3,5-2Big 12
West Virginia
11-8,1-6Big 12
No. 7/7 Men's Basketball wins 69-61 at West Virginia
01.21.2023 | Men's Basketball
Carr posts 19 of his game-high 23 points in the second half to the lead the Longhorns to the win in Morgantown.
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — Graduate guard Marcus Carr recorded a game-high 23 points to lead No. 7/7 Texas (16-3, 5-2 Big 12) to a 69-61 victory at West Virginia (11-8, 1-6 Big 12) on Saturday night at the WVU Coliseum. UT improved to 9-2 under the leadership of Interim Head Coach Rodney Terry with the win.
Carr had 19 of his 23 points in the second half and converted 8-of-14 field goals and 5-of-6 free throws while adding three assists and three steals in 37 minutes. Super senior Dylan Disu posted 13 points while hitting 6-of-9 field goals and recorded five rebounds in 24 minutes. Sophomore Tyrese Hunter had 11 points while converting 5-of-8 field goals and tallied four assists in 31 minutes, and super senior Christian Bishop added 11 points while hitting 5-of-9 field goals and registered a team-high seven rebounds in 24 minutes.
Trailing 28-26 at the half, the Longhorns converted 53.8-percent (14-26) from the floor and hit 13-of-17 (.765) free throws en route to outscoring the Mountaineers by a 43-33 margin over the final 20 minutes. Texas limited West Virginia to 35.7-percent (10-28) field goal shooting in the second half. The Longhorns allowed just eight assists while forcing 20 turnovers and tallied a 19-10 margin in points off turnovers on the night.
A back-and-forth first half saw five ties and five lead changes. After a Tre Mitchell layup tied the score at 6-6 with 15:59 left, the Longhorns used a 5-0 spurt to build an 11-6 advantage following a Sir'Jabari Rice three-pointer at the 14:36 mark. A Christian Bishop layup gave Texas a 15-11 lead with 10:46 remaining, but the Mountaineers responded with a 5-0 run to take a 16-15 cushion after a Mitchell jumper at the 8:44 mark.
A pair of Mitchell free throws provided West Virginia a 23-20 advantage with 5:51 left. The Longhorns answered with a Tyrese Hunter putback and a Bishop dunk to take a 24-23 lead at the 1:01 mark. The Mountaineers went on a 5-0 run to build a 28-24 cushion after a pair of Erik Stevenson free throws with eight seconds left, and Carr knocked down a jumper at the buzzer to trim the margin to 28-26 at the break.
West Virginia increased its lead to 38-33 following a Seth Wilson three-pointer at the 17:01 mark, before the Longhorns used a 7-0 spurt to grab a 40-38 advantage after a Carr jumper with 13:53 left. The Mountaineers evened the score at 44-44 on a James Okonkwo putback at the 10:46 mark, but Texas answered with a 5-0 run to build a 49-44 cushion after a Carr three-pointer with 9:35 left. The Longhorns extended the lead to 60-53 following a pair of Timmy Allen free throws at the 4:36 mark.
West Virginia cut the deficit to 63-61 after Kedrian Johnson knocked down three free throws with 2:39 left. But the Longhorns held the Mountaineers scoreless for the remainder of the contest, and Carr hit 4-of-4 free throws before sealing the victory with a jumper in the lane with 44 seconds remaining.
Texas is back in action on Tuesday, Jan. 24 when it hosts Oklahoma State. Tip is set for 8 p.m. Central at Moody Center, and the game will be televised nationally by Longhorn Network.
Texas Basketball Postgame Notes
#7/7 Texas 69, West Virginia 61
January 21, 2023
WVU Coliseum (Morgantown, W. Va.)
Attendance: 14,141
Team Notes
- UT is now 9-2 under the leadership of Interim Head Coach Rodney Terry.
- Texas improved to 3-1 in true road games and 5-2 overall in contests played away from Austin.
- The Longhorns have won five of the last six and eight of the last 10 meetings against West Virginia.
- Texas has earned victories in four of its last five trips to Morgantown.
- The Longhorns allowed just eight assists while forcing 20 turnovers and posted a 19-10 edge in points off turnovers. Texas has forced at least 15 turnovers in 15 of its first 19 contests this season.
- UT registered a 32-20 advantage in points in the paint and a 20-12 margin in bench scoring.
- Facing a 28-26 halftime deficit, the Longhorns converted 14-of-26 (.538) field goals and 13-of-17 (.765) free throws while holding the Mountaineers to 10-of-28 (.357) field goal shooting and outscoring WVU by a 43-33 margin in the second half.
- Texas improved to 5-3 when trailing at halftime this season, including a 5-2 mark under Interim Head Coach Rodney Terry.
- Reached double figures in scoring (11 points) for the fourth time this year (19 games) and 54th time in his career (143 games)
- Added a team-high seven rebounds (four offensive)
- Set a season high in minutes (24)
- Topped the 20-point mark (game-high 23 points) for the fifth time this year (19 games) and 30th time in his career (145 games)
- Had 19 points (6-8 FG, 2-3 threes, 5-6 FT) and three steals in 19 minutes of action during the second half
- Reached double figures in scoring for the 17th time this year and 102nd time in his career
- Recorded a team-best plus-minus total of plus-10 in 37 minutes
- Reached double figures in scoring (13 points) for the seventh time this season (18 games) and 36th time in his career (93 games)
- Set a season high in minutes (24)
- His 13 points were one shy of his season high (14 vs. TCU on Jan. 11)
- Reached double figures in scoring (11 points) for the 11th time this year (19 games) and 31st time in his career (54 games)
