Saturday, December 16
Springfield, Mass.
6:30 p.m.
West Virginia University
vs
Massachusetts
WVU and UMass to Meet in Basketball Hall of Fame Classic
December 15, 2023 12:09 PM | Men's Basketball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Following a week of final examinations and coming off a six-point victory over Drexel, West Virginia looks to build a little momentum when it faces Massachusetts in the Basketball Hall of Fame Classic in Springfield, Massachusetts, early Saturday evening.
The Minutemen, coached by Frank Martin, are currently 5-2 with victories over Albany, Quinnipiac, Central Connecticut State, USF and Mass-Lowell and losses to Harvard and Towson.
Martin, who formerly coached at Kansas State and South Carolina, led UMass to a 15-16 record last season. Martin has just one starter returning, power forward Matt Cross, but he's a cause for concern for the Mountaineers. The Beverly, Massachusetts, resident is averaging 16.1 points and 7.6 rebounds per game and plays a position that's a matchup problem for WVU.
"He's big and physical, 6-foot-7, 230, and he plays a lot lower than a lot of kids," West Virginia coach Josh Eilert said. "He can play a little bully-ball and get what needs to be done. The four position has been an issue for us trying to figure out the right personnel to handle those type of guys."
St. Francis transfer Josh Cohen, the Northeast Conference Player of the Year last season, provides ample support near the glass. The 6-foot-10, 220-pound senior is averaging a team-best 18 points and eight rebounds per game.
Those two will provide a formidable challenge for West Virginia's frontcourt trio of Jesse Edwards, Quinn Slazinski and Akok Akok.
"(UMass is) really good at offensive rebounding – top 10 in the country – and also second-chance points," Eilert said. "We've worked diligently, but it doesn't seem to be setting in so we might have to take a different approach because we've got to shore up our defensive rebounding."
The rest of UMass' expected starting lineup will consist of guards Kahsool Diggins (11.6 ppg., 2.7 rpg.), Keon Thompson (9.9 ppg., 3.4 rpg.) and Jayden Ndjigue (3.9 ppg., 4.9 rpg.).
"They're also top 10 in the country in points off turnovers, so they're going to turn up the heat," Eilert predicted. "I know they are going to get up in you, force the issue and make things uncomfortable."
Eilert is familiar with Frank Martin from their days working together on Bob Huggins' staff at Kansas State. Martin's style of play is similar to the way Huggins' teams played, so Eilert has a lot of insight to impart on his players.
Exactly who Eilert has available is still a question that might not be answered until game time.
On Wednesday, U.S. District Court judge John P. Bailey issued a two-week temporary restraining order suspending the NCAA's transfer waiver rule in a lawsuit brought on by West Virginia guard RaeQuan Battle, which provides a window for transfer players to play until a permanent ruling is made.
The NCAA provided more clarity on the transfer issue Thursday stating that an athlete who competes in a game during the two-week window will lose a season of eligibility if the court's ruling is reversed.
That means in the case of Battle, if he chooses to play on Saturday he runs the risk of losing his final season of eligibility. Eastern Michigan guard Noah Farrakhan has two year's of eligibility left and could choose to play as well.
West Virginia (4-5) has already been bolstered by the return of senior Akok Akok, who sat out the first seven games of the season because of a medica emergency suffered in the George Mason exhibition game played on Oct. 27. The 6-foot-10 forward grabbed a couple of rebounds and blocked a pair of shots in the Pitt loss and contributed five points in 12 minutes of action in the Drexel victory.
Eilert has said Akok will continue to get more playing time as he builds up his stamina.
West Virginia's backcourt will also get a big lift with the return of guard Kerr Kriisa, who was required to sit out the first nine games of the season after receiving impermissible benefits while he played at Arizona.
Kriisa averaged 9.4 points per game, shot 35.2% from 3-point range and led the Pac 12 in assists last year for the Wildcats.
His return to the floor will allow guard Kobe Johnson to move back to his more natural off-guard position and gives the Mountaineers considerably more depth in the backcourt.
If Battle and Farrakhan are on the court, that could change West Virginia's style of play considerably. The 6-foot-5 Battle averaged 17.7 points per game last season at Montana State and scored 27 points in last year's NCAA Tournament game against Kansas State.
Farrakhan averaged 12.1 points and shot 43.2% from the floor last season at Eastern Michigan and his addition would improve WVU's backcourt athleticism.
"By default, I've had to slow everything down in order to be competitive," Eilert explained. "It's also easier to hold guys accountable for what they do out there when you've got guys to replace them."
In last Saturday's win over Drexel, Eilert used a starting lineup of Johnson, Edwards, Slazinski, Josiah Harris and freshman Ofri Naveh. That will change with Kriisa back in the fold and could change even more, depending upon what Battle and Farrakhan choose to do.
"It's not something you see a lot, trying to transition three guys all at once in the middle of the season," Eilert admitted.
West Virginia and UMass were once Atlantic 10 rivals when the Mountaineers were in the conference and the two schools last played an NIT game in Morgantown in 2007, a 90-77 Mountaineer victory. West Virginia assistant coaches Da'Sean Butler and Alex Ruoff played in that game.
Overall, West Virginia owns a 28-13 record in the series and last played against the Minutemen in Springfield on Jan. 3, 1995, with UMass winning 95-65.
Saturday's game will be played MassMutual Center, formerly called the Springfield Civic Center.
The contest will be televised nationally on ESPNU (Robert Lee and Malcolm Huckaby) and will tip off at 6:30 p.m.
Mountaineer Sports Network radio coverage will Tony Caridi begins at 5:30 p.m. on stations throughout West Virginia and online via WVUsports.com and the Varsity Network and WVU Gameday apps.
In addition to UMass, West Virginia will have nonconference games left at home against Radford, Toledo and against Ohio State in Cleveland before opening Big 12 play at fourth-ranked Houston on Saturday, Jan. 6.
The Minutemen, coached by Frank Martin, are currently 5-2 with victories over Albany, Quinnipiac, Central Connecticut State, USF and Mass-Lowell and losses to Harvard and Towson.
Martin, who formerly coached at Kansas State and South Carolina, led UMass to a 15-16 record last season. Martin has just one starter returning, power forward Matt Cross, but he's a cause for concern for the Mountaineers. The Beverly, Massachusetts, resident is averaging 16.1 points and 7.6 rebounds per game and plays a position that's a matchup problem for WVU.
"He's big and physical, 6-foot-7, 230, and he plays a lot lower than a lot of kids," West Virginia coach Josh Eilert said. "He can play a little bully-ball and get what needs to be done. The four position has been an issue for us trying to figure out the right personnel to handle those type of guys."
St. Francis transfer Josh Cohen, the Northeast Conference Player of the Year last season, provides ample support near the glass. The 6-foot-10, 220-pound senior is averaging a team-best 18 points and eight rebounds per game.
Those two will provide a formidable challenge for West Virginia's frontcourt trio of Jesse Edwards, Quinn Slazinski and Akok Akok.
"(UMass is) really good at offensive rebounding – top 10 in the country – and also second-chance points," Eilert said. "We've worked diligently, but it doesn't seem to be setting in so we might have to take a different approach because we've got to shore up our defensive rebounding."
The rest of UMass' expected starting lineup will consist of guards Kahsool Diggins (11.6 ppg., 2.7 rpg.), Keon Thompson (9.9 ppg., 3.4 rpg.) and Jayden Ndjigue (3.9 ppg., 4.9 rpg.).
"They're also top 10 in the country in points off turnovers, so they're going to turn up the heat," Eilert predicted. "I know they are going to get up in you, force the issue and make things uncomfortable."
Eilert is familiar with Frank Martin from their days working together on Bob Huggins' staff at Kansas State. Martin's style of play is similar to the way Huggins' teams played, so Eilert has a lot of insight to impart on his players.
Exactly who Eilert has available is still a question that might not be answered until game time.
On Wednesday, U.S. District Court judge John P. Bailey issued a two-week temporary restraining order suspending the NCAA's transfer waiver rule in a lawsuit brought on by West Virginia guard RaeQuan Battle, which provides a window for transfer players to play until a permanent ruling is made.
The NCAA provided more clarity on the transfer issue Thursday stating that an athlete who competes in a game during the two-week window will lose a season of eligibility if the court's ruling is reversed.
That means in the case of Battle, if he chooses to play on Saturday he runs the risk of losing his final season of eligibility. Eastern Michigan guard Noah Farrakhan has two year's of eligibility left and could choose to play as well.
West Virginia (4-5) has already been bolstered by the return of senior Akok Akok, who sat out the first seven games of the season because of a medica emergency suffered in the George Mason exhibition game played on Oct. 27. The 6-foot-10 forward grabbed a couple of rebounds and blocked a pair of shots in the Pitt loss and contributed five points in 12 minutes of action in the Drexel victory.
Eilert has said Akok will continue to get more playing time as he builds up his stamina.
West Virginia's backcourt will also get a big lift with the return of guard Kerr Kriisa, who was required to sit out the first nine games of the season after receiving impermissible benefits while he played at Arizona.
Kriisa averaged 9.4 points per game, shot 35.2% from 3-point range and led the Pac 12 in assists last year for the Wildcats.
His return to the floor will allow guard Kobe Johnson to move back to his more natural off-guard position and gives the Mountaineers considerably more depth in the backcourt.
If Battle and Farrakhan are on the court, that could change West Virginia's style of play considerably. The 6-foot-5 Battle averaged 17.7 points per game last season at Montana State and scored 27 points in last year's NCAA Tournament game against Kansas State.
Farrakhan averaged 12.1 points and shot 43.2% from the floor last season at Eastern Michigan and his addition would improve WVU's backcourt athleticism.
"By default, I've had to slow everything down in order to be competitive," Eilert explained. "It's also easier to hold guys accountable for what they do out there when you've got guys to replace them."
In last Saturday's win over Drexel, Eilert used a starting lineup of Johnson, Edwards, Slazinski, Josiah Harris and freshman Ofri Naveh. That will change with Kriisa back in the fold and could change even more, depending upon what Battle and Farrakhan choose to do.
"It's not something you see a lot, trying to transition three guys all at once in the middle of the season," Eilert admitted.
West Virginia and UMass were once Atlantic 10 rivals when the Mountaineers were in the conference and the two schools last played an NIT game in Morgantown in 2007, a 90-77 Mountaineer victory. West Virginia assistant coaches Da'Sean Butler and Alex Ruoff played in that game.
Overall, West Virginia owns a 28-13 record in the series and last played against the Minutemen in Springfield on Jan. 3, 1995, with UMass winning 95-65.
Saturday's game will be played MassMutual Center, formerly called the Springfield Civic Center.
The contest will be televised nationally on ESPNU (Robert Lee and Malcolm Huckaby) and will tip off at 6:30 p.m.
Mountaineer Sports Network radio coverage will Tony Caridi begins at 5:30 p.m. on stations throughout West Virginia and online via WVUsports.com and the Varsity Network and WVU Gameday apps.
In addition to UMass, West Virginia will have nonconference games left at home against Radford, Toledo and against Ohio State in Cleveland before opening Big 12 play at fourth-ranked Houston on Saturday, Jan. 6.
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