Shanna Rose | WV Sports Chat
CINCINNATI, Ohio — Two of the Big 12’s better defensive teams meet Thursday night when West Virginia visits Cincinnati.
The Mountaineers (14-8, 5-4 Big 12) edged the Bearcats 62-60 in Morgantown on Jan. 6, closing the final two minutes on a 10-3 run after Cincinnati held a 57-52 lead with 4:46 remaining. The Bearcats were unable to close out the victory in their first Big 12 road game of the season.
Since that meeting, Cincinnati (11-11, 3-6) has recorded conference wins over Colorado, Iowa State and Baylor, while also dropping games to UCF, Arizona, Arizona State and most recently at Houston. With the regular season entering its final month, Thursday’s game carries added weight for two teams jockeying for position in the Big 12.
WVU appeared in ESPN.com’s Bracketology last weekend but missed an opportunity to strengthen its résumé with a 63-53 home loss to Baylor on Saturday. The Mountaineers were held below 60 points for the third straight game.
With an extra day to prepare, first-year coach Ross Hodge said his staff used Tuesday’s practice to address offensive spacing issues that have surfaced during a demanding stretch that included road trips to Texas and Arizona.
“When you go back and look at our good possessions that we’ve been able to have, there was usually really good spacing, and that allows players to make decisive and aggressive decisions with the ball,” Hodge said. “The last couple of games when we’ve gotten bogged down a little bit, spacing has been poor. How can you use some of the ways that people are guarding you and make sure that your spacing isn’t getting in the way of how you can attack that?”
Hodge said preparing for a second meeting with the Bearcats adds another layer to the matchup.
“This is the first time we’ve played a team for the second time,” he said. “Now we’ve all done it, but you’re looking at it the first time we played this was some things they did that hurt us and you would imagine they are looking at that and saying, ‘Hey, we have an advantage in these areas’ and what can we do to counterbalance that? Also, it’s things you did to hurt them and now assuming they may have a counter and not let you do that.
“These games have such small margin for error, and I think the biggest thing you can’t forget in all these things is you’ve got to be good in the margins,” he added. “You’ve got to get loose balls, you’ve got to get second-chance points, and you’ve got to do your best to continue to rebound the ball really well and make sure that you are not getting too singularly focused on plays, actions and strategy – which is very important – but you can kind of lose the foundation of just competing.”
Turnovers proved costly in the first meeting, as WVU allowed 18 fast-break points.
“A lot of those were direct run outs,” Hodge pointed out.
Hodge also emphasized limiting second-chance opportunities against Cincinnati forwards Baba Miller and Moustapha Thiam. Miller is averaging 13.4 points, 10.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game and ranks among the national leaders in defensive rebounding.
The Mountaineers allow 63.8 points per game, while the Bearcats allow 67.4. In a matchup between two of the league’s better defensive teams, limiting easy baskets could prove decisive.
Thursday marks WVU’s 11th visit to Cincinnati, where the Mountaineers have won three times, including a 63-50 victory last season at Fifth Third Arena. WVU leads the all-time series 14-12 and enters on a three-game winning streak against the Bearcats.
Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. EST. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
Photo Credit: WVU Athletics
