Don’t look now, but Daxter Miles has all three of WVU’s individual 20-point games this season and two have come in Big 12 play. He’s quickly gaining on Esa Ahmad for the team lead in scoring. Bob Huggins is OK with that and the Mountaineers are seemingly better for it.

You’re going to read and talk about Jevon Carter’s timely discovery of his jump shot and Sagaba Konate’s imminence, but how many times did Miles step forward for the offense? Eight straight points for WVU in the first half, six unanswered points in the second. Tip dunks. Back-cuts. A baseline lob for a tie-breaking basket, a corner 3 for the dagger.

The Mountaineers are intentionally and effectively balanced, but Miles seems more and more like the player who can jump up and get 15 points in a half or a few buckets in a key sequence. He is, according to the percentages, the best volume 3-point shooter and only Ahmad has a better field-goal percentage — and he’s not taking many 3s. Miles is second in effective field-goal percentage and true shooting, trailing only Brandon Watkins, who has surely solidified a starting spot for WVU.

Miles is good at blending in, but he’s perhaps the best at standing out. If this is to be a discussion for the Mountaineers, then maybe this is the answer. On Saturday, Miles wanted it.

Throughout the game, he’d zip over to the right corner along the baseline and lock eyes with a teammate with the ball. Again and again, Miles would quickly lift his head and make a quick move along the baseline toward the basket.

“They always see me,” Miles said. “I’m always trying. I try to be low-key sneaky with it. It’s just about communication. We know what we can do. We practice with each other every day.”

The pass never arrived, and TCU’s 2-3 zone would triumph, except for this one critical moment. Tarik Philip had the ball and Miles got Phillip’s attention. Miles dashed and Phillip flicked a soft pass to the right of the rim.

“I always tell them if it’s there, just throw it,” Miles said. “If I miss it, it’s on me, not them.”

Miles did not miss it. In one slick motion, he caught the pass and let it go above the rim. The lead belonged again to the Mountaineers with 9:29 remaining, and they’d have it the rest of the way.

“He always wants it,” teammate Jevon Carter said. “It definitely gets him going, and it was a little spark for our team.”

 TCU hurried to the other end, and Kenrich Williams thought he’d make a layup, but freshman forward Sagaba Konate blocked the shot. Nathan Adrian grabbed the rebound and found Phillip, and Phillip waited and passed to Konate, who made a layup, flexed his biceps and finished a three-point play for a 62-57 lead.