Busting Brackets
Fansided

Big 12 Basketball power rankings: Kansas, Baylor clear above others

By Tristan Freeman

MORGANTOWN, WV - FEBRUARY 10: Lindy Waters III #21 of the Oklahoma State Cowboys reacts after hitting a three pointer against the West Virginia Mountaineers at the WVU Coliseum on February 10, 2018 in Morgantown, West Virginia. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
MORGANTOWN, WV - FEBRUARY 10: Lindy Waters III #21 of the Oklahoma State Cowboys reacts after hitting a three pointer against the West Virginia Mountaineers at the WVU Coliseum on February 10, 2018 in Morgantown, West Virginia. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
9 of 11
Next
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 04: Logan Routt #31 of the West Virginia Mountaineers reacts after scoring in the final minutes of the first half of the game against the Florida Gators at Madison Square Garden on December 04, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 04: Logan Routt #31 of the West Virginia Mountaineers reacts after scoring in the final minutes of the first half of the game against the Florida Gators at Madison Square Garden on December 04, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images) /

7-1. . Mountaineers . 3. team. 469.

How good is St. John’s? West Virginia fans hope they’re for real, considering that the Red Storm gave them their first loss to the season. That’s the only thing that has gone wrong so far for a Mountaineer team who is coming off a complete disaster of a season a year ago. On paper, that team had more talent than the 2019-20 roster but this group shows what chemistry and discipline can un under head coach Bob Huggins.

The defense has gotten back to normal standards, giving up nearly 15 ppg fewer than last season. It’s a collective effort, with no individual player averaging more than 12 ppg at the moment. Speaking of 12, that’s how many players are in West Virginia’s rotation, playing at least eight minutes a night.

This team is led through their frontcourt, with freshman center Oscar Tshiebwe (11.8 ppg and 9.3 rpg) and sophomore forward Derek Culver (11.3 ppg and 9.5 rpg) forming a very tough 1-2 punch inside. This team does not shoot many three-pointers at all but Emmitt Matthews Jr and Sean McNeil are both over 40% to start the season.

This team is certainly still a work in progress and lacks a signature win for 2019-20. But victories over Pittsburgh, Rhode Island and Wichita State all look solid, while the Red Storm may also be an overachiever this year. We’ll have to wait a couple of weeks to see how good this Mountaineer team really is, facing off against Ohio State on December 29.

Home/Big 12