Big 12 Basketball: 2020-21 power rankings heading into New Year
4. team. 469. . 8-2 (1-1). . Mountaineers
It’s been an eventful first month of the season for the Mountaineers. They won the Crossover Classic with wins over Western Kentucky, South Dakota State, and VCU, while also beating both Georgetown and Richmond in the non-conference slate. Their most impressive performance came in a loss to No. 1 Gonzaga, having a halftime lead and holding them to their current season-low of 87 points.
Last season, the main issue regarding West Virginia was the lack of offensive production from the guards. That has turned into a strength this time around, led by sophomore guard Miles McBride. The 6’2 guard is having a breakout campaign, averaging a team-leading 14.8 ppg and 4.1 apg. Two other perimeter players (Sean McNeil and Taz Sherman) are also averaging in double figures as well.
In the frontcourt, Derek Culver (14.1 ppg and 9.9 rpg) has been just good. Unfortunately, his frontcourt partner Oscar Tshiebwe has struggled, limited to only 20 mpg and at times being outplayed by reserve forward Gabe Osabuohien. Things have clearly come to a head, with the sophomore leaving the team just recently. Add to it freshman forward Isaiah Cottrell out for the season with an injury, and the frontcourt went from having plenty of depth to now being a question outside of Culver.
Look for the Mountaineers to use more small-lineups with Culver at the five. With the guards having all improved, the offense shouldn’t take a hit. However, the defense hasn’t been overly impressive, which may make them vulnerable in league play if games get high scoring. That was the case in West Virginia’s loss to Kansas a couple of weeks ago.