CLEVELAND, Ohio — Derek Culver knew it was over when he saw the hat go flying.
Culver had just swatted an Ohio State shot into the first row at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. Though there was still 1:41 left on the clock, that was the moment when it became clear to him that No. 22 West Virginia was on the verge of an upset win over the No. 2 Buckeyes.
“Once I looked up, I saw this man, he looked like a diehard Ohio State fan. He just threw his hat on the ground, picked it up and walked off,” Culver said. “I was like ‘Hey, we’ve got this one.'”
The Mountaineers (11-1) certainly did, handing the Buckeyes (11-2) a 67-59 loss.
West Virginia outscored Ohio State 14-5 over the final 4:30 of the game. It was WVU’s first neutral-court win over a Top 5 opponent since beating Kentucky in the 2010 Elite Eight.
“They’re a good team that’s extremely well-coached,” said West Virginia coach Bob Huggins.
The primary burr under the Buckeyes’ saddle was the in-state kid they did not recruit. Freshman point guard Miles McBride led all scorers with a career-high 21 points off the bench, capped off by a one-handed 18-footer that extended West Virginia’s lead to five points with the shot clock expiring and 1:14 to play.
“I went into my pull-up jumper, and Kaleb Wesson made a great play. I threw a shot fake and just went up under him,” McBride said. “As soon as it left my hand, I knew it was going in.”
The off-balance shot was so unorthodox that McBride simply shrugged as he moved back down the court, mimicking Michael Jordan’s famous gesture in the 1992 NBA Finals.
“I almost did it too,” Culver said. “But then I saw Oscar doing it, so I had to get back on defense.”
The game meant a great deal to McBride, the Cincinnati native who was never on Ohio State’s recruiting radar thanks in part to a broken ankle that left him playing in just two games as a high school junior.
He still has enough love for the Buckeyes that he was bummed about Ohio State’s Fiesta Bowl loss to Clemson Saturday night, but when it comes to Buckeye basketball, McBride was a stone-cold assassin.
“You’ve got to play [with a chip on your shoulder],” McBride said. “You know your opponent is good.
“My mom was an alumni who played tennis for them, but she wore blue-and-gold today. So I had to get a W for her.”
The Mountaineers needed their guards to step up in a game where star forwards Culver and Oscar Tshiebwe were beset with foul trouble in a very tightly officiated contest. Tshiebwe was whistled for two fouls in the first two minutes, and picked up his fourth only 19 seconds into the second half. He played just nine minutes.
Culver had four fouls in his 25 minutes. He finished with seven points and 10 rebounds.
“We fought through foul trouble that other teams would not be able to,” Huggins said.
West Virginia made up for its oft-missing big men by dominating Ohio State 45-17 in bench scoring. Chase Harler had 10 of those points.
Gabe Osabuohien again contributed in ways that aren’t measured by field-goal percentage, finishing with three steals, threes assists and a block to go with his two rebounds and three points.
The Mountaineers overcame a horrendous performance at the free-throw line. West Virginia only made 4 of its first 12 foul shots, but finally started hitting them down the stretch to finish 60 percent (15 of 25) at the charity stripe.
Jordan McCabe came off the bench after an extended absence due to McBride’s performance, hitting four straight free throws to keep the Mountaineers ahead.
Ohio State shot just 31 percent from the field while committing 22 turnovers. The Buckeyes came into the game as one of the top 10 teams in the country in effective field goal percentage.
Naismith Award hopeful Kaleb Wesson led the Buckeyes with 17 points and nine rebounds.
Next up
West Virginia opens Big 12 play at the league’s toughest venue, visiting No. 5 Kansas on Saturday at 4 p.m.