NCAA Basketball: Preseason Top-25 power rankings for 2020-21 season

Whenever the conversation comes to West Virginia for this season, it starts with the frontcourt duo of Derek Culver and Oscar Tshiebwe. The dynamic duo is arguably the best defensive pair in NCAA Basketball and combined to produce 21.6 ppg and 17.9 rpg.

Neither player spreads the floor so the spacing can get tight. The hope is that the third frontcourt player Isaiah Cottrell can help smooth things out with his shooting and can play with either big at the four-spot.

"One thing to love about this team is that they are extremely balanced and Huggins is not afraid to go deep into his bench. Nobody played more than 24 minutes a game including Tshiebwe and Culver. – Drew Schmelzer (@DrewSchelzer)"

The perimeter is the bigger question. They still haven’t found the right kind of offense ever since all-time guard Jevon Carter left. The closest thing to him is point guard Miles McBride, who nearly averaged double figures last season. Jordan McCabe will get another chance to warrant a spot in the rotation, while Emmitt Matthews, Jr. can play and score from the 2 and 3 spots on the court.

Sean McNeil will continue to provide needed shooting, while newcomer JUCO wing Kedrian Johnson could be the boost needed for the Mountaineers offense to vault them into contender status in the Big 12.

The defense will be strong once again for West Virginia but an argument can be made that this is the worst offensive unit in this top-25 rankings. That may cost them a few games just as much as their defense could score them a few upsets. It’ll be up to the guards to rise the team’s collective ceiling.