NCAA Basketball: Takeaways from 2020 Jimmy V Classic participants

West Virginia Mountaineers – Inability to put teams away will cost them

The big moment in this game came when Jalen Suggs of Gonzaga hurt his ankle and had to exit at least for the rest of the first half. The score was about tied but the Bulldogs were still in shock, allowing West Virginia to take a leading and being by as much as nine with a few minutes to go.

The problems for the Mountaineers came when both Joel Ayayi and Andrew Nembhard were able to create their own offense outside of making jump shots from the perimeter. Their penetration and constant backdoor cuts exposed a clear defensive weakness for the team. Despite having imposing interior defenders in Derek Culver and Oscar Tshiebwe inside, West Virginia has allowed a ton of points in the paint this season. Against Gonzaga, it was a whopping 60.

While the Mountaineers played solid defense for the most part against this high-octane offense, their own problems with shooting became their downfall. Starting guards Sean McNeil and Miles McBride combined to go 5/23 from the field for 13 points total. There also were a ton of tough shots attempted from the perimeter, instead of forcing the ball inside where they had a clear advantage.

Even when Suggs was in the game, West Virginia showed that they can compete with the very best. And with the production off the bench from both Isaiah Cotrell and Gabe Osabuohien, this is a Mountaineer team with the depth and frontcourt power to be a top-10 team this season. They just need to continue improving from the perimeter and take better shots, which would’ve allowed them to get a commanding lead in the first half and potentially allow them to get the upset later.