MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – No. 13 West Virginia (18-4, 6-3 Big 12) defeated Iowa State (9-13, 2-7 Big 12), 76-61 Wednesday night in Morgantown.
The Mountaineers connected on 50 percent of their shots and won the rebounding battle (46-28), as the Cyclones fell to a ranked team for the sixth time in their last nine games.
Oscar Tshiebwe led WVU with 16 points (7-9 FG).
The Cyclones, who made 40 percent of their shots, have lost all 13 games this season when shooting worse than their opponent.
Rasir Bolton led the Cyclones with 18 points, making three of ISUs five 3-pointers. Tyrese Haliburton added 12 points and had five steals. The Cyclone star now has 108 steals in his career to rank 20th on ISUs record list.
How It Happened
West Virginia opened the game making 7-of-8 shots while taking control with a 19-6 lead. Bolton ended an 11-0 WVU run with a layup, but the Mountaineers continued their hot shooting.
West Virginia, which led by as many as 19 points, had a 41-27 lead at the break by connecting on 59 percent of its shots. Two 3-pointers by Bolton, who had 10 first-half points, in the final two minutes allowed the Cyclones to make a dent in the WVU lead.
Bolton scored seven quick points for the Cyclones to begin the second half, but the Mountaineers soon went on a 7-0 flurry to mount a 20-point lead (56-36) with 14:05 remaining in the contest.
Players of Note
Tyrese Haliburton scored 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting. He also had five thefts, the 14th time this season the Cyclone star had three or more steals. Haliburton now has 108 in his career to rank 20th all-time in school history.
Rasir Bolton led the Cyclones in scoring for the 13th time this season with 18 points. Bolton drilled a trio of 3-pointers, the sixth time this season hes made three or more treys in a game.
Up Next
Iowa State returns home to face Kansas State on Saturday (Feb. 8). Tipoff is at 7 p.m.
