West Virginia knocks off No. 1 Baylor: 3 things we learned

West Virginia took down no. 1 Baylor on Tuesday. Here’s a look at what we learned.

The West Virginia Mountaineers made a statement on Tuesday night, walloping the No. 1-ranked Baylor Bears, 89-68, in Morgantown.

Hometown hero Nathan Adrian led the way for the Mountaineers, scoring 22 points in the win. Junior Jevon Carter added 17 as no Baylor player scored more than 10.

The loss will mark the end of Baylor’s reign atop the college basketball polls and also shed some light on both teams. Here’s what we learned.

1. This is an upgraded version of Press Virginia

Since head coach Bob Huggins instituted the Press Virginia system a few years ago, there were always some outs for the Mountaineers’ opponents. In particular, West Virginia had a habit of sending teams to the free throw line as they aggressively pursued turnovers in the open floor. For two straight seasons, the Mountaineers ranked dead last in Division I in defensive free throw rate, but things seem to be changing.

The turnovers are still there. West Virginia forced Baylor into 29 of them on Tuesday night, one on 40.5 percent of possessions, but the fouls are less common. Entering the contest, the Mountaineers ranked a more respectable 273rd in defensive free throw rate. Against Baylor, they committed just 20 fouls and allowed only 23 free throws. Sure, there’s always a bit of a favorable home whistle, but what we watched was also an evolution of Press Virginia, one that should scare the top teams in the country come tournament time.

2. Maybe there was something to those critiques of Baylor

We shouldn’t blow this loss out of proportion. Baylor lost on the road in a tough environment against an even tougher opponent, but entering Tuesday night’s contest, it still faced plenty of questions.

Despite being undefeated with the country’s best resume, the Bears were not a unanimous No. 1 in Monday’s polls in part because they had yet to prove themselves on the road against a quality opponent. Baylor’s lone true road game came on December 30 against an Oklahoma team that was missing its best player. Tonight’s performance will do little to quiet the critics.

The Bears looked out of sorts for the entire contest as West Virginia sped up the pace, forcing turnovers and creating fast break opportunities. Even when Baylor got open looks it felt like they were waiting on a Mountaineer to bear down on them.

There shouldn’t be any doubt that the Bears are still a quality squad with Final Four potential, but it’s worth acknowledging that those who raised questions about their ceiling weren’t crazy to do so.

3. Get to know West Virginia’s Nathan Adrian

The most important player in the Mountaineers’ press is the one who guards the inbounds pass. That guy is responsible for calling out the coverages and deciding when to trap as the ball approaches halfcourt. Last season, Jonathan Holton played the role. In 2016-17, Nathan Adrian has been charged with the task.

At 6-foot-9, Adrian has impressive versatility on the defensive end. He’s capable of moving his feet quick enough laterally to stay in front of faster guards in the backcourt and big enough to do battle on the boards when he plays inside.

On Tuesday, though, Adrian also contributed with his offense, scoring 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field. It’s hard to pinpoint any singular player as West Virginia’s most valuable, but there’s an argument to be made for Adrian and against Baylor, he showed why.