The Venezuelan forward pounced in the second half after Juan Mata had seen red for two bookings within moments of each other before the break
Salomon Rondon punished Juan Mata 's ill-discipline to end Manchester United 's winning run.
Louis van Gaal's Red Devils headed to the Hawthorns on Sunday off the back of four straight wins.
But Mata's two moments of madness in the first half ceded any advantage
they may have had before Rondon made them pay on the scoresheet in the second.
United huffed and puffed but could not find an equaliser as Tony Pulis beat United for only the second time in 14 attempts.
Here are five things we learned:
Juan Mata still cannot tackle
The Spaniard was sold by Jose Mourinho from Chelsea for £37million in January 2014 despite winning back-to-back player of the season awards.
Mourinho didn't the fancy the midfielder due to his lack of tracking back and tackling.
Mata underlined he still hasn't learnt to tackle well by rashly clattering Darren Fletcher for a second booking to see red here.
Much-improved Rondon better with a strike partner
Salomon Rondon now has four goals in six Premier League games, having failed to score in his previous nine.
Venezuela international Rondon, a £12million summer signing from Zenit, is performing much better since Tony Pulis opted to play two upfront and recalled Saido Berahino
Van Gaal cautious about playing kids
United's starting line-up against Watford in midweek had an average age of 23 years and 222 days old - the fourth youngest they have ever fielded in the Premier League.
But at combative Albion, who had promised a “physical” approach, Van Gaal turned to older performers
Pulis savours rare success against United
Former Stoke and Crystal Palace boss Tony Pulis had lost 11 of his previous 13 Premier League games against Manchester United, winning only one.
But Albion had the better of the first half and their prospects improved hugely after Mata saw red.
End to United's superb Hawthorns record
United were unbeaten in their previous 11 league games against West Brom at The Hawthorns – winning nine.
But that proud run was ended as Mata saw red and Salomon Rondon fired in.
Barclays Premier League
| Pos | Logo &Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Leicester City | 29 | 17 | 9 | 3 | 52 | 31 | 21 | 60 |
| 2 |  Tottenham Hotspur | 29 | 15 | 10 | 4 | 51 | 24 | 27 | 55 |
| 3 |  Arsenal | 29 | 15 | 7 | 7 | 46 | 30 | 16 | 52 |
| 4 |  Manchester City | 28 | 15 | 5 | 8 | 52 | 31 | 21 | 50 |
| 5 |  West Ham United | 29 | 13 | 10 | 6 | 45 | 33 | 12 | 49 |
| 6 |  Manchester United | 29 | 13 | 8 | 8 | 37 | 27 | 10 | 47 |
| 7 |  Liverpool | 28 | 12 | 8 | 8 | 43 | 37 | 6 | 44 |
| 8 |  Stoke City | 29 | 12 | 7 | 10 | 31 | 34 | -3 | 43 |
| 9 |  Southampton | 29 | 11 | 8 | 10 | 36 | 29 | 7 | 41 |
| 10 |  Chelsea | 29 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 43 | 39 | 4 | 40 |
| 11 |  West Bromwich Albion | 29 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 30 | 36 | -6 | 39 |
| 12 |  Everton | 28 | 9 | 11 | 8 | 51 | 39 | 12 | 38 |
| 13 |  Watford | 29 | 10 | 7 | 12 | 29 | 30 | -1 | 37 |
| 14 |  Bournemouth | 29 | 9 | 8 | 12 | 35 | 45 | -10 | 35 |
| 15 |  Crystal Palace | 29 | 9 | 6 | 14 | 32 | 39 | -7 | 33 |
| 16 |  Swansea City | 29 | 8 | 9 | 12 | 28 | 37 | -9 | 33 |
| 17 |  Sunderland | 29 | 6 | 7 | 16 | 35 | 54 | -19 | 25 |
| 18 |  Norwich City | 29 | 6 | 6 | 17 | 31 | 54 | -23 | 24 |
| 19 |  Newcastle United | 28 | 6 | 6 | 16 | 28 | 53 | -25 | 24 |
| 20 |  Aston Villa | 29 | 3 | 7 | 19 | 22 | 55 | -33 | 16 |
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