Friday, November 8
Morgantown, W.Va.
7:00 p.m.
West Virginia University
vs
Akron
Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks
Mountaineers Lift Lid on 2019-20 Season Friday Night
November 07, 2019 06:48 PM | Men's Basketball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Last year, in terms of analytics, Akron had one of the best defenses in the country. The Zips gave up 94.1 points per 100 possessions, which ranked 22nd nationally according to Ken Pomeroy's adjusted defense efficiency metric.
So far this year, what West Virginia coach Bob Huggins has watched on tape is a good Akron defensive team that can now also score.
"They really, really shoot it now," he said before Thursday's practice. "They've got good players. They've got a couple transfers eligible and they've got some guys with experience. The point guard is a lot like the little guy at Duquesne and maybe shoots it a little bit more consistently, but really good with the ball and really quick.
"They're a good team."
Friday night's game will be a fascinating test for Huggins' Mountaineers, for sure – much like Buffalo was last year. The Zips were pegged for a middle-of-the-pack finish in the Mid-American East this year, but based on what they have coming back, that might be a little bit of underselling.
Loren Cristian Jackson, the point guard Huggins mentioned, scored 12 points, grabbed six rebounds and handed out three assists in Akron's 81-64 victory over Malone on Tuesday night.
Xeryius Williams, a 6-9 transfer from Dayton, led the Zips with 17 points and nine rebounds. Akron played two other guys taller than 6-9 in senior Deng Riak and junior Jaden Sayles.
"They may play them all at the same time," Huggins said. "(Akron coach) John (Groce) runs good stuff. They run a lot of double-high, ball-screen stuff, a lot of ball-screen, dive and fill and they spread you because they can all make shots. They might put one guy on the floor that isn't a real good 3-point shooter so they try to get you spread out to where they can screen and roll."
It will be interesting to see how Huggins' young team defends Akron. It will also be interesting to see how much effort they put into defending.
Huggins said after last Friday night's exhibition game his team's effort left a lot to be desired – something that plagued his team all year long in 2018-19.
"We didn't play very well and I didn't think we played very hard. I just thought we were kind of out there," he said. "Our bigs didn't run and our bigs are capable of running well.
"We didn't get the easy baskets I was hoping we could get," he added.
Against the Dukes, freshman forward Oscar Tshiebwe led West Virginia with 17 points and 14 rebounds – a lot of his 17 coming on stick-back baskets.
Junior college guard Sean McNeil contributed 12 off the bench while Emmitt Matthews Jr. added 11 points in the 78-70 victory.
Huggins used a big starting lineup with 6-10 Derek Culver and 6-9 Oscar Tshiebwe teaming with 6-7 Emmitt Matthews Jr. up front, with Chase Harler and Jordan McCabe in the backcourt.
At the end of the game, however, the five players Huggins had on the floor were sophomore guard Brandon Knapper, freshman guard Miles McBride, McNeil, Matthews Jr. and Tshiebwe.
"I'm hoping that's a positive. We've got three guys we can play at point, maybe four if you count Jermaine (Haley), so I think that position is loaded but the good thing is those guys can also play off the ball," Huggins said. "That's why I was disappointed we didn't play harder. I think if we go out and play really hard I don't think other people are going to have the depth that we have, particularly on the perimeter."
Haley was held out of last Friday's exhibition game and junior college guard Taz Sherman, who scored 8 first-half points, left in the second half after taking a blow to the head. Huggins said both will be available for Friday night's opener, putting the Mountaineers back at full strength.
The coach said Thursday afternoon he will be much happier on Friday night if his guys put forth the effort expected of them.
"I think effort is the key to everything," he explained. "We will rebound better if our effort is better. We will guard better if our effort is better and we will score better because we need to be a transition team."
Friday's game will tip off at 7 p.m. and will be televised locally on AT&T Sportsnet. Mountaineer fans outside of the AT&T Sportsnet viewing area will be able to watch a livestream of the contest through WVUsports.com.
Friday's game will be Huggins' 14th season opener at West Virginia and his 38th overall as a college coach where he holds an overall record of 860-362.
"It's great for the young guys and the new guys," he said of taking part in another opener. "To have people in the stands and the enthusiasm of having some people in there … there is a heck of a difference playing in an empty gym and playing in a gym where there are people in there.
"Hopefully we'll get 9 or 10,000 people (Friday night)."
Tickets still remain and can be purchased online by logging on to WVUGAME.com.
So far this year, what West Virginia coach Bob Huggins has watched on tape is a good Akron defensive team that can now also score.
"They really, really shoot it now," he said before Thursday's practice. "They've got good players. They've got a couple transfers eligible and they've got some guys with experience. The point guard is a lot like the little guy at Duquesne and maybe shoots it a little bit more consistently, but really good with the ball and really quick.
"They're a good team."
Friday night's game will be a fascinating test for Huggins' Mountaineers, for sure – much like Buffalo was last year. The Zips were pegged for a middle-of-the-pack finish in the Mid-American East this year, but based on what they have coming back, that might be a little bit of underselling.
Loren Cristian Jackson, the point guard Huggins mentioned, scored 12 points, grabbed six rebounds and handed out three assists in Akron's 81-64 victory over Malone on Tuesday night.
Xeryius Williams, a 6-9 transfer from Dayton, led the Zips with 17 points and nine rebounds. Akron played two other guys taller than 6-9 in senior Deng Riak and junior Jaden Sayles.
"They may play them all at the same time," Huggins said. "(Akron coach) John (Groce) runs good stuff. They run a lot of double-high, ball-screen stuff, a lot of ball-screen, dive and fill and they spread you because they can all make shots. They might put one guy on the floor that isn't a real good 3-point shooter so they try to get you spread out to where they can screen and roll."
It will be interesting to see how Huggins' young team defends Akron. It will also be interesting to see how much effort they put into defending.
Huggins said after last Friday night's exhibition game his team's effort left a lot to be desired – something that plagued his team all year long in 2018-19.
"We didn't play very well and I didn't think we played very hard. I just thought we were kind of out there," he said. "Our bigs didn't run and our bigs are capable of running well.
"We didn't get the easy baskets I was hoping we could get," he added.
Against the Dukes, freshman forward Oscar Tshiebwe led West Virginia with 17 points and 14 rebounds – a lot of his 17 coming on stick-back baskets.
Junior college guard Sean McNeil contributed 12 off the bench while Emmitt Matthews Jr. added 11 points in the 78-70 victory.
Huggins used a big starting lineup with 6-10 Derek Culver and 6-9 Oscar Tshiebwe teaming with 6-7 Emmitt Matthews Jr. up front, with Chase Harler and Jordan McCabe in the backcourt.
At the end of the game, however, the five players Huggins had on the floor were sophomore guard Brandon Knapper, freshman guard Miles McBride, McNeil, Matthews Jr. and Tshiebwe.
"I'm hoping that's a positive. We've got three guys we can play at point, maybe four if you count Jermaine (Haley), so I think that position is loaded but the good thing is those guys can also play off the ball," Huggins said. "That's why I was disappointed we didn't play harder. I think if we go out and play really hard I don't think other people are going to have the depth that we have, particularly on the perimeter."
Haley was held out of last Friday's exhibition game and junior college guard Taz Sherman, who scored 8 first-half points, left in the second half after taking a blow to the head. Huggins said both will be available for Friday night's opener, putting the Mountaineers back at full strength.
The coach said Thursday afternoon he will be much happier on Friday night if his guys put forth the effort expected of them.
"I think effort is the key to everything," he explained. "We will rebound better if our effort is better. We will guard better if our effort is better and we will score better because we need to be a transition team."
Friday's game will tip off at 7 p.m. and will be televised locally on AT&T Sportsnet. Mountaineer fans outside of the AT&T Sportsnet viewing area will be able to watch a livestream of the contest through WVUsports.com.
Friday's game will be Huggins' 14th season opener at West Virginia and his 38th overall as a college coach where he holds an overall record of 860-362.
"It's great for the young guys and the new guys," he said of taking part in another opener. "To have people in the stands and the enthusiasm of having some people in there … there is a heck of a difference playing in an empty gym and playing in a gym where there are people in there.
"Hopefully we'll get 9 or 10,000 people (Friday night)."
Tickets still remain and can be purchased online by logging on to WVUGAME.com.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's BasketballTV Highlights: WVU 81, Lafayette 59
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