Tall Task
February 17, 2006 08:20 PM | General
February 17, 2006
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| John Beilein |
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia coach John Beilein was about a third of the way through his Friday evening press conference talking about No. 1-ranked Connecticut when he had to stop himself.
“The more I think about it, this is depressing conversation,” Beilein joked.
The Huskies (22-2, 9-2) can have that affect on opposing coaches. Whether it’s their NBA-sized front line, their quick guards or deadeye shooters on the wing, UConn has a little bit of everything. Hilton Armstrong and Josh Boone both stand taller than 6-10, and exciting sophomore Rudy Gay stands 6-9.
“They’ve got incredible size. Everyone is 6-9, 6-10 or taller along the front line,” Beilein said.
Gay, a sure-fire top NBA prospect, has been Connecticut’s catalyst averaging 16.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. The Baltimore resident has scored at least 18 points in each of his last five games including a 22-point effort in an 80-76 win over Pittsburgh. Gay is shooting 46.3 percent overall and has made 21 3-point shots.
“He can shoot 3s very well. He sees the floor well and he’s such a great athlete,” Beilein said. “He’s what we see every three or four games in the Big East – a player of this magnitude.”
Gay isn’t the only big-time player in UConn’s lineup. Josh Boone was a big contributor during Connecticut’s NCAA title run two years ago and is averaging 10.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. Marcus Williams is averaging 10.2 points and has dealt out a team-best 102 assists.
Six-six senior Rashad Anderson is unquestionably the league’s top sixth-man, averaging 13.8 points and making a team-best 61 3-pointers.
“Anderson is such a tremendous shooter and he really put the dagger in us last year,” Beilein said.
Even though the two teams have contrasting styles, Beilein doesn’t think West Virginia is quite talented enough to impose its will on Connecticut.
“I’d like to say that we can out-will anybody but as far as winning the game we’re going to have to have one of those games where we get open shots and we make a very high percentage of them because we won’t get easy shots,” Beilein said. “I don’t know if you can will in a jump shot. We can will ourselves to dive on the floor for a loose ball and tip the ball to a teammate.”
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| Connecticut forward Rudy Gay is averaging 16.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game
AP Photo/Jessica Hill |
The coach admits he’s had to walk a fine line between resting his team and giving them the work they need to improve certain parts of their game.
“If you worry too much about the fatigue thing then their skills go down. If you work too hard with them at improving their skills then their legs might go on you so it’s a balancing act that we all do all the time,” Beilein said. “It’s always a concern at this time of the year: are we doing the right thing? You’ve just got to coach and do what your gut tells you.”
One thing that could be in West Virginia’s favor Saturday is an expected large and supportive crowd.
“You’ve got a lot of people rooting for you and then it spurs the home team to make dives on the floor and take charges,” Beilein said. “It can intimidate an offensive team that is on the road. At the same token this is a crowd Connecticut plays in front of wherever they’re at. This isn’t new for them.”
Another factor in West Virginia’s favor is the fact that the Mountaineers were able to beat both of the teams that knocked off Connecticut in league play (Marquette and Villanova).
“That’s good news for us,” Beilein chuckled. “I don’t know how this game will turn out but there are just some games that are good match ups for teams for some reason. Georgetown was a good match up for us and Villanova for some reason we could really get some things on where we couldn’t get anything on Seton Hall. Sometimes it’s just strange how it all works out.”
The coach isn’t positive, but he believes this might be the first time he’s coached against the No. 1-ranked team in the nation.
“If I paid more attention to things like that I would know,” he said. “My first game ever was against the defending nation champions in Duke.”
Tip off is set for 3:45 pm. There are no tickets remaining for the game.
CBS (Gus Johnson and Bill Raftery) will televise the game to most of the country. Fans that cannot get the West Virginia-Connecticut telecast can order it online through CSTV All-Access XXL for $9.95.
