WVU basketball: Wesley Harris gets slap on the wrist

Wesley Harris may not have thought much of it at the time but he may have found himself in great trouble following the WVU basketball game at Texas Tech.

The Mountaineers lost a hard-fought game on the road at Texas Tech on Saturday. It was hard on everyone involved but especially hard on the players who leave their blood, sweat and tears on the court.

The WVU basketball team had a nice lead but saw it falter away against the Red Raiders. The Mountaineers took Texas Tech down to the wire, but it wasn’t enough to escape with a victory against a top 10 team. It was a big win for the Red Raiders, so much so that the fans stormed the court following the game.

Harris took exception to that and was caught on film striking a swarming student. Sagaba Konate may have also been involved. This is a horrible incident that should never happen. The first issue is students storming the court after a game. Somebody can get hurt. The players, coaches, security, people sitting on the floor and students are all at risk. The Big 12 Conference took exception to the Texas Tech fans and fined the university $25,000 according to Blue Gold News. The site also says that Harris received a public reprimand.

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The real punishment Harris should be worried about is what could be handed down by head coach Bob Huggins. Huggins is a tough-love type of director and he has probably already given Harris a stiff punishment before the team even got back to Morgantown. The famed treadmill at the WVU Coliseum probably got a lot of use by Harris over the weekend. Harris may be kept out of the lineup against Kansas this evening. That could open the door for more playing time for Esa Ahmad. Now, Konate may not get off scotch free either.

The biggest issue is that WVU basketball players should be more aware of their surroundings and stay disciplined. Huggins is known for being a disciplinarian and one would think that the players should know better when put in a difficult situation. But the players are still college students who aren’t always thinking straight.

The same goes for the Texas Tech students. Their actions should not be considered embarrassing or wrongful. They were young people having a good time displaying their school spirit. Fans of the WVU basketball team have done the same many times at the WVU Coliseum.

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This was totally on Harris for making a dumb decision in the heat of the moment. It was a moment that could have been avoided had the WVU basketball team not performed so terribly offensively against Texas Tech.