CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Bob Huggins’ postgame take on West Virginia’s come-from-behind 74-64 win over Marshall included more comments downplaying the Capital Classic rivalry.
“As much as everybody wants to make it (a heated rivalry), it’s not,” he said. “I could lie and say it is. I probably should lie, because somebody will say I’m a jerk for saying it, but the truth is our guys are not looking forward, saying ‘We’ve got Marshall. We’ve got Marshall.'”
Likewise, Huggins expressed doubt that Marshall placed any extra emphasis on this game, which drew 11,036 fans to the 12,500-seat Charleston Civic Center.
As Huggins mentioned this week, his previous coaching stops included two rivalries with more buildup and fervor.
“Go have Xavier-Cincinnati and Kansas-Kansas State,” he said. “You don’t get all the hoopla (with WVU-Marshall) that you get in those other games.”
WVU now leads the series 31-11 and holds an 18-5 edge since the game shifted annually to Charleston.
Click the video to see Huggins’ complete news conference, which included insight on Juwan Staten’s decisive handling of the final minutes and Brandon Watkins’ breakthrough performance.