West Virginia, not exactly a powerhouse within its own house of late, is a favored by a touchdown tonight against a Texas Tech team that’s going to come in thinking it can win. Sure, they’ve won two in a tow, but the Red Raiders are a better defensive team that can change its looks, a team that rebounds the ball better and a team that feasts on close shots and points in the paint.

Where have the Mountaineers struggled? Generating offense and making shots, rebounding on either end and scoring and stopping scores near the basket. WVU is not without advantages, though. It’s a better perimeter shooting and scoring team with better guard play and a greater likelihood of getting hot and riding it to a big lead — particularly at home.

But this game is also one between a team on a good streak against a team on a sneaky slide (maybe it’s not as bad as it looks?) that, honestly, can go either way, as cliche as that may sound. Texas Tech can beat WVU and it would make sense or the Mountaineers could beat the Red Raiders and that would make perhaps more sense.

But remember last year when we were breathlessly watching Bob Huggins lose on unprecedented levels? He hadn’t had a four-game losing streak since his first season as a Division I coach, but lost the last seven games last season. A loss tonight would be a fourth straight once again, but it’s certainly avoidable.

So I ask you: What are the keys? What numbers must the Mountaineers hit, what marks must they make to win or, maybe more precisely, avoid losing?