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West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen admires what he has seen from Oklahoma State quarterback Mason Rudolph, even if that has included repeated success against the Mountaineers.
"We've been competing against this guy for four years, it seems like," said Holgorsen, who is actually preparing to face Rudolph a third time Saturday in Morgantown. "Mason is really mature. He's a big, tall, good-looking dude that throws the ball extremely well.
"He has a great knowledge of their offense. And he has a really good relationship with probably one of the best receiving corps in college football."
Rudolph has quarterbacked the Cowboys to wins in both of his starts against West Virginia -- in overtime in 2015 and 37-20 in Stillwater a year ago when he threw for three scores.
And behind Rudolph, the No. 11-ranked Cowboys (6-1, 3-1 Big 12) enter Saturday's matchup as the favorite over No. 22 West Virginia (5-2, 3-1).
Yet this time, Holgorsen has his own hot hand of a quarterback in Will Grier, the nation's leader in touchdown passes with 26 while throwing just five interceptions.
"He's had a lot of success," Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said of Grier. "His completion percentage and his touchdown-to-interception ratio and such are very good. He has fit well into their system. And he's playing with a lot of confidence, from what it looks like to me when I watch him on video.
"I think this guy throws it better than anybody we've played up to this point."
The quarterback matchup commands the spotlight, yet there are plenty more storylines in this Top 25 pairing.
Each team's top wide receivers -- James Washington for the Cowboys and West Virginia's David Sills V -- rate among the country's best playmakers and deep threats.
Oklahoma State hopes to get healthy along its offensive line, an issue in last Saturday's 13-10 overtime win at Texas, which utilizes a similar defensive approach as the Mountaineers.
And most importantly, the game sets up as a likely Big 12 elimination bout, with the loser absorbing a second conference loss that will be difficult to overcome with four weeks remaining after this weekend.
The league standings are bunched, with TCU at the top with a 4-0 conference record. Four schools, including the Mountaineers and Cowboys, sit at 3-1, all hoping to advance to the Big 12 title game.
"We don't address it every week," Holgorsen said. "That's what everybody's goal is going into the season, and as long as you're in the conversation, then I think you're going to get your team's best effort every week.
"Half the league is ranked in the Top 25. That tells you how good the league really is."
The quarterbacks figure to play prominent roles in the outcome.
Rudolph tied Gundy for the program lead in career quarterback wins a week ago, moving to 28-7 as the starter. The senior has thrown for more than 11,000 yards in his career with 74 touchdowns and a completion percentage better than 63 percent.
Rudolph sits No. 1 nationally in passing yards and passing yards per game (378.6). He is 161 of 242 for 2,650 yards and 19 touchdowns, with just four interceptions.
Grier is in his first season as West Virginia's starter after transferring from Florida. He already is making his mark on the program, setting a Mountaineers record with seven straight 300-yard passing games to begin his career. His back-to-back five-touchdown games against Texas Tech and Baylor the past two weeks are also West Virginia records.
For the season, he is 177 of 267 for 2,467 yards. Besides leading the nation in touchdown passes, he ranks fourth in passing yards per game (352.4) and fifth in passing efficiency.
Rudolph and Grier are battling for quarterback supremacy, both in the Big 12 and nationally.
"It's still year one for Will," Holgorsen said. "They're both very seasoned guys, though. They're both older guys -- very mature guys -- but Will is still trying to establish his timing with more than just a couple of guys.
"We know it exists with Gary (Jennings Jr.) and with David, and we're trying to get it with a couple of other guys. That's what Oklahoma State has right now that we're still lacking."
Showing posts with label West Virginia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label West Virginia. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Friday, March 24, 2017
Top-seeded Gonzaga survives for 61-58 win over West Virginia
By JOSH DUBOW
AP Sports Writer
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) Jevon Carter fired up two potential tying 3-pointers only to see them go off-target and Gonzaga didn't allow West Virginia to get off a third.
A defensive stop was a fitting way for this offensively challenged Sweet 16 matchup to end.
Jordan Mathews hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with under a minute to play and top-seeded Gonzaga survived a rough shooting night all around to beat No. 4 seed West Virginia 61-58 Thursday night to advance to the West Regional final.
"All year we've been banking on our defense, our defense, our defense," coach Mark Few said. "Our defense stepped up and got it done there at the end. So we are absolutely elated to continue to be playing. We're 40 minutes away from a Final Four."
The Bulldogs (35-1) needed that defense to make their third Elite Eight in school history on a night that featured 51 fouls and only 34 made baskets. They also needed someone to make a key shot and Mathews delivered with the 3-pointer that made it 60-58.
"We had never come across that throughout the season. It wasn't frustration. It was more like, I don't know, confusion, trying to figure it out," Mathews said of the shooting woes. "But just staying the course and just rallying around our guys and just thinking about the defensive end, helped my offense in the end."
West Virginia (29-8) had three shots to tie the game but Tarik Phillip missed a shot from the lane and Jevon Carter missed two 3-pointers after Silas Melson made one foul shot. The Mountaineers rebounded both misses but couldn't get another shot off in the final 13 seconds.
"To know you were so close and you gave everything you had and to come up sort, it hurts," said Carter, who had a game-high 21 points.
Despite shooting 26.7 percent for the game, West Virginia stayed close and took a 58-55 lead on a 3-pointer by Carter with 1:47 to play. But the Mountaineers didn't score again and went down to a crushing loss.
Nigel Williams-Goss answered with two free throws. After Daxter Miles Jr. missed two fouls shots and Nathan Adrian was blocked by Josh Perkins on the putback, Williams-Goss found Mathews in the corner for the open 3-pointer that proved the game-winner.
"You tell me another team in the country who can shoot 26 percent from the field against a No. 1 seed, 21 percent from 3 and still could have, should have won the game," coach Bob Huggins said. "That says a lot about what kind of guys we have."
Mathews, Przemek Karnowski and Johnathan Williams all had 13 points to lead the Bulldogs.
BIG PICTURE
West Virginia: The Mountaineers could get nothing going offensively most of the night but a pair of 3-pointers by Carter in the second half helped them fight back from an eight-point deficit to briefly take the lead in the second half. The rest of the team made just 10 baskets.
Gonzaga: The Bulldogs struggled to get into their offense all game. When they managed to beat the Mountaineers relentless press, they couldn't capitalize in the halfcourt. WCC Player of the Year Williams-Goss was held to 10 points on 2-for-10 shooting with five turnovers.
MONKEY AROUND
Gonzaga as made it to its third regional final to go along with eight Sweet 16 trips and 19 straight tournament appearances. All that's missing is a trip to the Final Four.
"I don't know that I have a monkey on my back. I certainly don't wake up with one or walk around with one," Few said. "I don't think these guys think I have one. I don't think my wife thinks I have one or anybody in my family, close friends. Fishing buddies never talk about it. So those are the only people that really matter to me."
INADVERTENT WHISTLE
Carter's go-ahead shot came after a lengthy replay review that gave West Virginia a second chance. Adrian appeared to go out of bounds under the basket in transition but the officials reviewed the play and determined that there was an inadvertent whistle.
UGLY START
The first half was far from an aesthetic masterpiece with 27 fouls and just 16 baskets. The teams combined for 29 percent shooting, including 2 for 16 from 3-point range as the game went into the break tied at 30.
UP NEXT
Gonzaga plays No. 11 seed Xavier for a spot in the Final Four.
AP Sports Writer
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) Jevon Carter fired up two potential tying 3-pointers only to see them go off-target and Gonzaga didn't allow West Virginia to get off a third.
A defensive stop was a fitting way for this offensively challenged Sweet 16 matchup to end.
Jordan Mathews hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with under a minute to play and top-seeded Gonzaga survived a rough shooting night all around to beat No. 4 seed West Virginia 61-58 Thursday night to advance to the West Regional final.
"All year we've been banking on our defense, our defense, our defense," coach Mark Few said. "Our defense stepped up and got it done there at the end. So we are absolutely elated to continue to be playing. We're 40 minutes away from a Final Four."
The Bulldogs (35-1) needed that defense to make their third Elite Eight in school history on a night that featured 51 fouls and only 34 made baskets. They also needed someone to make a key shot and Mathews delivered with the 3-pointer that made it 60-58.
"We had never come across that throughout the season. It wasn't frustration. It was more like, I don't know, confusion, trying to figure it out," Mathews said of the shooting woes. "But just staying the course and just rallying around our guys and just thinking about the defensive end, helped my offense in the end."
West Virginia (29-8) had three shots to tie the game but Tarik Phillip missed a shot from the lane and Jevon Carter missed two 3-pointers after Silas Melson made one foul shot. The Mountaineers rebounded both misses but couldn't get another shot off in the final 13 seconds.
"To know you were so close and you gave everything you had and to come up sort, it hurts," said Carter, who had a game-high 21 points.
Despite shooting 26.7 percent for the game, West Virginia stayed close and took a 58-55 lead on a 3-pointer by Carter with 1:47 to play. But the Mountaineers didn't score again and went down to a crushing loss.
Nigel Williams-Goss answered with two free throws. After Daxter Miles Jr. missed two fouls shots and Nathan Adrian was blocked by Josh Perkins on the putback, Williams-Goss found Mathews in the corner for the open 3-pointer that proved the game-winner.
"You tell me another team in the country who can shoot 26 percent from the field against a No. 1 seed, 21 percent from 3 and still could have, should have won the game," coach Bob Huggins said. "That says a lot about what kind of guys we have."
Mathews, Przemek Karnowski and Johnathan Williams all had 13 points to lead the Bulldogs.
BIG PICTURE
West Virginia: The Mountaineers could get nothing going offensively most of the night but a pair of 3-pointers by Carter in the second half helped them fight back from an eight-point deficit to briefly take the lead in the second half. The rest of the team made just 10 baskets.
Gonzaga: The Bulldogs struggled to get into their offense all game. When they managed to beat the Mountaineers relentless press, they couldn't capitalize in the halfcourt. WCC Player of the Year Williams-Goss was held to 10 points on 2-for-10 shooting with five turnovers.
MONKEY AROUND
Gonzaga as made it to its third regional final to go along with eight Sweet 16 trips and 19 straight tournament appearances. All that's missing is a trip to the Final Four.
"I don't know that I have a monkey on my back. I certainly don't wake up with one or walk around with one," Few said. "I don't think these guys think I have one. I don't think my wife thinks I have one or anybody in my family, close friends. Fishing buddies never talk about it. So those are the only people that really matter to me."
INADVERTENT WHISTLE
Carter's go-ahead shot came after a lengthy replay review that gave West Virginia a second chance. Adrian appeared to go out of bounds under the basket in transition but the officials reviewed the play and determined that there was an inadvertent whistle.
UGLY START
The first half was far from an aesthetic masterpiece with 27 fouls and just 16 baskets. The teams combined for 29 percent shooting, including 2 for 16 from 3-point range as the game went into the break tied at 30.
UP NEXT
Gonzaga plays No. 11 seed Xavier for a spot in the Final Four.
Tuesday, March 21, 2017
Gonzaga wary of West Virginia's pressing defense
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Gonzaga is bracing itself for the challenge West Virginia’s defense presents after looking at the results of the Mountaineers’ 83-71 win over Notre Dame in an NCAA Tournament second-round game last week.
The No. 1-seeded Bulldogs (33-1) play No. 4 West Virginia (28-8) in a West Regional semifinal game Thursday at San Jose, Calif. The winner advances to the Elite Eight to play the winner of Xavier-Arizona.
The Fighting Irish commit only 9.5 turnovers a game, which ranks second nationally. They almost turned the ball over that many times in the first half Saturday. They finished with 14 against the “Press Virginia” defense.
The turnovers are a cause for concern for Gonzaga, the top seed in the West Region, after the Bulldogs committed 13 turnovers in their 79-73 win over Northwestern in a second-round game. The Wildcats scored 17 points off turnovers in the second half to fuel a comeback.
“We got a little challenged at the other end and started making bonehead passes and bonehead decisions, and needed to just settle down,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. “We were trying to make plays in small windows. And we’re not very good when we do that.”
West Virginia (28-8) leads the nation in turnovers forced with 20.1 per game. Opponents turn the ball over on 28 percent of their possession, which also tops the nation.
“That’s what we do,” West Virginia coach Bub Huggins said of the havoc his defense presents. “We try to make people play kind of the way we want them to play.”
Gonzaga point guard Nigel Williams-Goss will be important against the Mountaineers’ press. His ability to run the fast break or play at a steady pace should give the Bulldogs confidence.
Williams-Goss has a better than 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio with 161 assists and 72 turnovers. Josh Perkins, the other significant ball-handler, has less favorable numbers with 113 assists and 68 turnovers.
Williams-Goss said the Bulldogs know what it takes to handle the pressure West Virginia may present because their resiliency is shown with only one loss on the season.
“We don’t think of anything as pressure,” Williams-Goss said. “We had pressure all year long. We were undefeated and we didn’t feel any of that. This is what we live for, what we prepare for and we enjoy doing. We all enjoy competing at the highest level.”
West Virginia was only an overtime loss at Kansas away from sweeping the No. 1-seeded Jayhawks during the regular season.
Because the Mountaineers use the entire length of the court, Huggins employs a deep rotation with 10 players averaging at least 11 minutes played per game. Leading scorer Jevon Carter (13 points per game) is the only Mountaineer to play at least 30 minutes per game (31.7).
The Mountaineers are a team of athletes that lacks a center who matches up in size with Gonzaga’s post player Przemek Karnowski, who is 7-foot-1 and 300 pounds.
Carter and fellow guards Daxter Miles and Tarik Phillip combined for 54 points on 17-of-29 shooting from the field with nine rebounds, eight assists and three turnovers in the win over Notre Dame. They shot 7 of 10 from 3-point range and 13 of 15 from the free-throw line.
“All year we’ve been telling ourselves that we got the best group of guards in the country, and we truly believe that,” Carter said. “So, when it’s time for us to play, we go out there and give it our all. Sometimes it worked. But we’re going to put forth 100 percent and we’re going to live and die with it.”
Sunday, March 19, 2017
Mountaineers clinch Sweet 16 berth with win over Notre Dame
By JOHN WAWROW
AP Sports Writer
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) Don't be fooled by the Mountaineers referring to themselves as "Press" Virginia as a result of their relentless defensive pressure.
This team can score.
Led by Jevon Carter's 24 points, the Mountaineers outshot the Fighting Irish in an 83-71 win on Saturday to clinch their third Sweet 16 berth since 2010.
"They thought of us as defensive players," guard Tarik Phillip said. "But the coaching staff instilled a lot of confidence in us, helped us develop our offensive game, and we became pretty good offensive players."
West Virginia entered the tournament leading the nation in forcing 20.4 turnovers, while also ranking 15th in averaging 82 points. The Mountaineers topped 80 points for the 18th time, while also breaking the single-season school scoring record set by the Jerry West-led 1958-59 squad.
Daxter Miles scored 18 points, and Esa Ahmad had nine rebounds.
Carter led the way in matching a season high, while going 8 of 15, including 4 of 5 in 3-pointers.
His last 3-pointer all but finished the fifth-seeded Fighting Irish (26-10) as they attempted one final comeback bid.
Notre Dame's Matt Ryan hit a 3-point basket in the right corner to cut West Virginia's lead to 72-66 with 3:06 left.
Carter responded by crossing through the middle and pulling up to hit a fall-away 3-pointer about 25 seconds later.
"Just staying confident," said Carter, the Big 12's defensive player of the year. "When we step on the court, we feel like we can beat them. We got hot early and kept going from there. We keep that chip on our shoulder."
The Mountaineers continue to overcome the sting of last year's first-round tournament collapse, when they lost to 14th-seeded Stephen F. Austin.
Now they're off to the round of 16 for the first time since 2015, for the fourth time since coach Bob Huggins took over in 2007, and seventh time since the NCAA field expanded to 64 teams in 1985.
Notre Dame was denied a chance to reach the Elite Eight for a third consecutive year .
Bonzie Colson led the Fighting Irish in hitting 10 of 15 shots, scored 27 points and had eight rebounds. Otherwise, the rest of the teammates were stymied.
Guard Matt Farrell was limited to eight points, while V.J. Beachem hit 2 of 14 attempts and finished with 9 points.
Coach Mike Brey said the difference was Notre Dame falling behind 10-0 and eventually getting worn down from attempting to dig out of such a hole. The Irish did eventually cut the lead to 32-29 only to give up two baskets over a 20-second span in a game the Mountaineers never trailed.
"Any time we thought we'd get this thing to four or get it to two possessions, somebody hit a big 3 or they got a putback," Brey said. "It's really spirit-breaking after a while."
Brey had to gamble in keeping Colson in after the star forward picked up his fourth foul with 9:47 left and with West Virginia up 59-47 Colson scored 10 of Notre Dame's next 14 points over a 5-minute span.
"It's horrible," said Colson, whose shoulders were heaving in emotion as he left the court. "It's frustrating when you try to play your tail off and play with everything you have and just leave everything out there."
GONE COLD: Beachem hit a combined 3 of 23 attempts for 15 points in two tournament games. That was a significant drop off for a player who scored 70 points in propelling the Fighting Irish's run to the Elite Eight. "I just wasn't able to knock them down," he said.
MOUNTAINEERS SCALE POINTS MARK: With Carter's fade away 3-point basket that put the Mountaineers up 13-4 6:04 into the game, West Virginia upped its season total to 2,886 points and broke the school record set by the Jerry West-led Mountaineers in 1958-59. There's an asterisk that goes with the record. The 1958-59 team scored 2,884 points in just 34 games in a season that ended with a loss to California in the national championship game. This year, the Mountaineers set the mark in their 36th game.
TURNED OVER: The Fighting Irish turned the ball over 10 times and trailed 42-35 at the half. Notre Dame had not committed double-digit turnovers in its previous nine games since a 13-turnover outing in an 84-72 win over Florida State on Feb. 11.
The Fighting Irish finished with just 14 turnovers overall.
HUGGINS LOVES BUFFALO: The Mountaineers coach improved to 4-0 in NCAA Tournament games in Buffalo. The Mountaineers opened their Final Four run in Buffalo in 2010. Huggins closed his news conference by referring to his success and saying: "Any time you want to invite us to come back, we'll come back."
UP NEXT
West Virginia advances to play the winner of the game between top-seeded Gonzaga and eighth-seeded Northwestern in the third round at San Jose, California, on Thursday.
AP Sports Writer
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) Don't be fooled by the Mountaineers referring to themselves as "Press" Virginia as a result of their relentless defensive pressure.
This team can score.
Led by Jevon Carter's 24 points, the Mountaineers outshot the Fighting Irish in an 83-71 win on Saturday to clinch their third Sweet 16 berth since 2010.
"They thought of us as defensive players," guard Tarik Phillip said. "But the coaching staff instilled a lot of confidence in us, helped us develop our offensive game, and we became pretty good offensive players."
West Virginia entered the tournament leading the nation in forcing 20.4 turnovers, while also ranking 15th in averaging 82 points. The Mountaineers topped 80 points for the 18th time, while also breaking the single-season school scoring record set by the Jerry West-led 1958-59 squad.
Daxter Miles scored 18 points, and Esa Ahmad had nine rebounds.
Carter led the way in matching a season high, while going 8 of 15, including 4 of 5 in 3-pointers.
His last 3-pointer all but finished the fifth-seeded Fighting Irish (26-10) as they attempted one final comeback bid.
Notre Dame's Matt Ryan hit a 3-point basket in the right corner to cut West Virginia's lead to 72-66 with 3:06 left.
Carter responded by crossing through the middle and pulling up to hit a fall-away 3-pointer about 25 seconds later.
"Just staying confident," said Carter, the Big 12's defensive player of the year. "When we step on the court, we feel like we can beat them. We got hot early and kept going from there. We keep that chip on our shoulder."
The Mountaineers continue to overcome the sting of last year's first-round tournament collapse, when they lost to 14th-seeded Stephen F. Austin.
Now they're off to the round of 16 for the first time since 2015, for the fourth time since coach Bob Huggins took over in 2007, and seventh time since the NCAA field expanded to 64 teams in 1985.
Notre Dame was denied a chance to reach the Elite Eight for a third consecutive year .
Bonzie Colson led the Fighting Irish in hitting 10 of 15 shots, scored 27 points and had eight rebounds. Otherwise, the rest of the teammates were stymied.
Guard Matt Farrell was limited to eight points, while V.J. Beachem hit 2 of 14 attempts and finished with 9 points.
Coach Mike Brey said the difference was Notre Dame falling behind 10-0 and eventually getting worn down from attempting to dig out of such a hole. The Irish did eventually cut the lead to 32-29 only to give up two baskets over a 20-second span in a game the Mountaineers never trailed.
"Any time we thought we'd get this thing to four or get it to two possessions, somebody hit a big 3 or they got a putback," Brey said. "It's really spirit-breaking after a while."
Brey had to gamble in keeping Colson in after the star forward picked up his fourth foul with 9:47 left and with West Virginia up 59-47 Colson scored 10 of Notre Dame's next 14 points over a 5-minute span.
"It's horrible," said Colson, whose shoulders were heaving in emotion as he left the court. "It's frustrating when you try to play your tail off and play with everything you have and just leave everything out there."
GONE COLD: Beachem hit a combined 3 of 23 attempts for 15 points in two tournament games. That was a significant drop off for a player who scored 70 points in propelling the Fighting Irish's run to the Elite Eight. "I just wasn't able to knock them down," he said.
MOUNTAINEERS SCALE POINTS MARK: With Carter's fade away 3-point basket that put the Mountaineers up 13-4 6:04 into the game, West Virginia upped its season total to 2,886 points and broke the school record set by the Jerry West-led Mountaineers in 1958-59. There's an asterisk that goes with the record. The 1958-59 team scored 2,884 points in just 34 games in a season that ended with a loss to California in the national championship game. This year, the Mountaineers set the mark in their 36th game.
TURNED OVER: The Fighting Irish turned the ball over 10 times and trailed 42-35 at the half. Notre Dame had not committed double-digit turnovers in its previous nine games since a 13-turnover outing in an 84-72 win over Florida State on Feb. 11.
The Fighting Irish finished with just 14 turnovers overall.
HUGGINS LOVES BUFFALO: The Mountaineers coach improved to 4-0 in NCAA Tournament games in Buffalo. The Mountaineers opened their Final Four run in Buffalo in 2010. Huggins closed his news conference by referring to his success and saying: "Any time you want to invite us to come back, we'll come back."
UP NEXT
West Virginia advances to play the winner of the game between top-seeded Gonzaga and eighth-seeded Northwestern in the third round at San Jose, California, on Thursday.
Thursday, March 16, 2017
Bucknell-West Virginia Preview
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The last time West Virginia’s NCAA Tournament run began in Buffalo, N.Y., it finished at the Final Four.
The Mountaineers will try to retrace their steps from 2010 this year. Seeded fourth in the West Region, West Virginia will meet No. 13 seed Bucknell in a first-round game Thursday at Buffalo’s KeyBank Center.
“I like Buffalo,” West Virginia coach Bob Huggins said. “It was good to us last time.”
West Virginia (26-8) is coming off an 80-74 loss to Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship game. Earning the nickname “Press Virginia” for its frenetic, full-court defense, the Mountaineers lead the nation in steals (10.4 per game) and forced turnovers (20.4), and their defense ranks among the top five in the KenPom efficiency ratings.
Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Jevon Carter leads a balanced Mountaineers attack at 13.1 points per game. Seven other players average at least 5.6 points.
In recent weeks, however, West Virginia has not been able to control the pace of play as well it had earlier in the season.
“We’ve got to get back to being the aggressor,” Huggins said. “We have to get back to dictating how the game’s played. We haven’t done that. We’ve kind of let other people dictate style and pace, and we can’t do that. We have to play the way we play.”
If West Virginia can beat Bucknell, a potential matchup with former Big East rival fifth-seeded Notre Dame looms in the second round. The Fighting Irish are the nation’s best at limiting turnovers.
But the Mountaineers aren’t looking ahead in the bracket after getting upset in the first round as a No. 3 seed last year by Stephen F. Austin.
“We’ve got to come in and stay focused,” senior forward Nathan Adrian said. “We can’t look past our opponent, which honestly we did a little bit last year.”
Patriot League champion Bucknell (26-8) is playing in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003. The Bison went 15-3 in winning a second-straight regular season title and earned an automatic bid with three home wins in the Patriot League tournament. They have won six straight and 14 of their last 16.
This will be Bucknell’s seventh NCAA Tournament appearance and first for coach Nathan Davis, who was an assistant under Pat Flannery when Bucknell won NCAA Tournament games against Kansas in 2005 and Arkansas in 2006.
“If I were them (West Virginia) I’d be very scared. We will get it done,” said senior center Ben Oberfeld, who is out for the season with an injury, according to the Sunbury Daily Item.
Patriot League Player of the Year Nana Foulland is averaging 14.9 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocks. The 6-foot-9 center also was the Defensive Player of the Year. Tournament MVP Zach Thomas is averaging 16 points, 6.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists.
“We’re going to try to get it up the floor and get good shots,” Davis told the Sunbury Daily Item. “They’re going to turn you over some, but we’re going to have to limit live ball turnovers so we can at least set up our defense. We’ve certainly seen pressure before from people. I don’t know that it’s been as long and athletic.”
The Bison went 2-3 vs. NCAA Tournament teams this season, defeating Vanderbilt and Mount St. Mary’s, and losing to Butler, Wake Forest and Princeton.
Bucknell is 0-8 all-time against West Virginia. The two teams have not met since 1977, when Huggins scored 14 points in the Mountaineers’ 112-71 victory.
The last time West Virginia’s NCAA Tournament run began in Buffalo, N.Y., it finished at the Final Four.
The Mountaineers will try to retrace their steps from 2010 this year. Seeded fourth in the West Region, West Virginia will meet No. 13 seed Bucknell in a first-round game Thursday at Buffalo’s KeyBank Center.
“I like Buffalo,” West Virginia coach Bob Huggins said. “It was good to us last time.”
West Virginia (26-8) is coming off an 80-74 loss to Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship game. Earning the nickname “Press Virginia” for its frenetic, full-court defense, the Mountaineers lead the nation in steals (10.4 per game) and forced turnovers (20.4), and their defense ranks among the top five in the KenPom efficiency ratings.
Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Jevon Carter leads a balanced Mountaineers attack at 13.1 points per game. Seven other players average at least 5.6 points.
In recent weeks, however, West Virginia has not been able to control the pace of play as well it had earlier in the season.
“We’ve got to get back to being the aggressor,” Huggins said. “We have to get back to dictating how the game’s played. We haven’t done that. We’ve kind of let other people dictate style and pace, and we can’t do that. We have to play the way we play.”
If West Virginia can beat Bucknell, a potential matchup with former Big East rival fifth-seeded Notre Dame looms in the second round. The Fighting Irish are the nation’s best at limiting turnovers.
But the Mountaineers aren’t looking ahead in the bracket after getting upset in the first round as a No. 3 seed last year by Stephen F. Austin.
“We’ve got to come in and stay focused,” senior forward Nathan Adrian said. “We can’t look past our opponent, which honestly we did a little bit last year.”
Patriot League champion Bucknell (26-8) is playing in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003. The Bison went 15-3 in winning a second-straight regular season title and earned an automatic bid with three home wins in the Patriot League tournament. They have won six straight and 14 of their last 16.
This will be Bucknell’s seventh NCAA Tournament appearance and first for coach Nathan Davis, who was an assistant under Pat Flannery when Bucknell won NCAA Tournament games against Kansas in 2005 and Arkansas in 2006.
“If I were them (West Virginia) I’d be very scared. We will get it done,” said senior center Ben Oberfeld, who is out for the season with an injury, according to the Sunbury Daily Item.
Patriot League Player of the Year Nana Foulland is averaging 14.9 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocks. The 6-foot-9 center also was the Defensive Player of the Year. Tournament MVP Zach Thomas is averaging 16 points, 6.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists.
“We’re going to try to get it up the floor and get good shots,” Davis told the Sunbury Daily Item. “They’re going to turn you over some, but we’re going to have to limit live ball turnovers so we can at least set up our defense. We’ve certainly seen pressure before from people. I don’t know that it’s been as long and athletic.”
The Bison went 2-3 vs. NCAA Tournament teams this season, defeating Vanderbilt and Mount St. Mary’s, and losing to Butler, Wake Forest and Princeton.
Bucknell is 0-8 all-time against West Virginia. The two teams have not met since 1977, when Huggins scored 14 points in the Mountaineers’ 112-71 victory.
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