If the West Virginia University basketball squad could ever find a way to make Coach Bob Huggins happy, they could be looking at a picture-perfect run to the Final Four. Until then, they’ll have to make do with tickling the fancy of the Mountaineer faithful.
The 17th-ranked Mountaineers had the sold-out Coliseum rocking Saturday night, dispatching Texas Tech 66-54 behind a smothering defense and a 22-point outburst from freshman guard Miles “Deuce” McBride.
It was the first home game for WVU since Dec. 14 and moved the record to 13-2. Tech, last year’s NCAA Tournament runner-up, is now 10-5 and ranked 22nd by Associated Press.
The Red Raiders had swept the regular season series from WVU last year and drew the ire of Huggins after dancing for the cameras of ESPN right after the game in Morgantown. The Mountaineers have since knocked off Tech in the Big 12 quarterfinals last year — with a rough, ragged WVU team — and then dominated this match.
SOME OBSERVATIONS
The WVU defense set the tone early. Tech’s first possession resulted in a shot-clock violation — the first of three in the half — then blocked shot after blocked shot after blocked shot. WVU had a huge size advantage and used it, at least defensively.
“I think if we would’ve capitalized on it rather than throwing the ball away on the other end, (the defense) would’ve had a lot more affect,” said Huggins, who added that, defensively, “I thought we were OK. I didn’t think we were great. We’ve got to become more consistent in a whole bunch of areas.”
Tech’s backdoor cuts were troubling, for sure, but there was some crazy good defense being played. Oscar Tshiebwe had three blocks early, Derek Culver erased a couple others, and the one-on-one defense of Gabe Osabuohien, Chase Harler, Jordan McCabe, Deuce McBride and Emmitt Matthews was at times spellbinding.
Harler, the pride of Moundsville, had an amazing strip-block on a breakaway midway through the first half, and followed with WVU’s first trey of the game.
“He’s our best on-ball defender because he tries the hardest,” said Huggins, who finally found something pleasing to discuss. “Chase has been terrific.”
Yet despite the ferocity of what announcer Fran Fraschilla has termed The Anaconda Defense, WVU’s offensive woes continued and the game was tight until about six minutes into the second half. That’s when Deuce got loose.
MILES McBRIDE
A 6-2, 190-pound freshman, McBride has the look of a star. He has the body control of contortionist, the soft touch of a surgeon, and the cajones of a crooked politician. He’s coming at you, and then coming some more. At one point in this game he scored 13 of WVU’s 15 points when it opened up a tight contest and took control.
“Coach Huggins trusts me a lot,” McBride would say later. “He’s great at that. If someone is hot he’s going to make sure he gets the ball.”
“He’s not afraid,” Huggins said of McBride. “He exudes confidence.”
Right now, McBride is the only player who is creating his own shot with any measure of success. The twin towers of Tshiebwe and Culver are talented and willing, but entry passes to the low post are proved burdensome for the Mountaineers.
“We didn’t capitalize on our size because we didn’t get the ball to them,” Huggins pointed out. “It would help if they’d learn to pass it to each other. But we’re talking about a freshman and a sophomore. I keep having to tell myself that. But if I didn’t expect it and demand it from them, I don’t know how we’d get it done.”
Brandon Knapper looked good in the second half. McBride pointed out that he and Knapper are always on the same team in practice scrimmage, so the chemistry is building.
“Knapp’s just getting better and better,” Huggins said. “We couldn’t play him earlier because he was turning it over more than he was helping us. We had a heart-to-heart.”
Knapper and McBride were the only two WVU players with a field goal in the second half.
THE FORWARDS
The key to the offense could rest with Matthews and Jermaine Haley. Haley looks comfortable operating along the baseline and the low post, but seems a step slow on the perimeter. Matthews finally broke free of his braids and dropped the dreads again but didn’t appear much more hair-o-dynamic facing the bucket. Both play a fine floor game, but more is needed in the scoring column.
You’ll not see much scoring from Osabuohien, but this kid is a maestro on the defensive end. Quick, long, and with a knack for shutting down passing lanes, he’s at home guarding smaller players and is invaluable in matchups like this.
Osabuohien’s emergence has also taken some floor time away from Cameron grad Logan Routt. The 6-11 senior looked great in his cameo last night but played just two minutes against Tech’s four-guard attack. “It’s hard to play Logan in a game like that,” Huggins admitted.
THE STATS
— The Mountaineers shot 35 free throws to Tech’s seven. In a related note, WVU is home three of its next four games and five of its next seven.
— Huggins now has 873 career wins, eighth all-time and just three away from the legendary Adolph Rupp, and six from tying Dean Smith. He is eligible once again for induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame for the 2020 class. Isn’t it time?
— Going into Saturday’s game with Tech, WVU’s first 14 opponents had a combined win percentage of .752 (164-54), the highest in the nation.
— For the fall semester, WVU had a team GPA of 3.21, with 10 players over 3.0. Harler, working on his Master’s Degree in Sports Management, fashioned a 4.0.
