If West Virginia is to stop the downward spiral it has gone through the last two weeks, the Mountaineers will need to do so away from home while stepping outside of conference play when they face Arkansas at 2 p.m. Saturday.
The contest at Bud Walton Arena will be shown on ESPN2 and marks one of 10 games Saturday in the Big 12/SEC Challenge, an annual series between the two leagues in its ninth season of existence.
This matchup pits two teams whose seasons are heading in opposite directions since mid-January. Arkansas (15-5, 5-3) has won five consecutive games since losing three straight and five of six prior, while the Mountaineers (13-6, 2-5) have lost four in a row after winning back-to-back games in Big 12 play.
“I’ve just watched the recent streak. I didn’t watch the other streak,” WVU head coach Bob Huggins said. “They’re playing really well together. Defensively, they’re doing a good job guarding pick and roll. Most teams in college basketball are trying to shore up their pick and roll defense. I watch what they do. I don’t pay attention to what their psyche is like. I can’t figure out ours.”
It’s safe to say Huggins believes his team is coming off its worst showing of the season in Wednesday’s 72-62 loss to Oklahoma. Outside of leading 3-2 and 6-4, WVU was never in front as it suffered its second straight setback at the Coliseum after starting the season with 10 wins at home.
The Sooners shot better than 51 percent from the field, made 21-of-22 free throws, held a 32-26 rebounding edge and limited WVU to less than 38 percent shooting.
“We were probably as bad as we’ve been arguably in seven years,” Huggins said. “We weren’t just bad; We were horrible. Our guys realize that. You want to get back in good standing so to speak.”
Huggins has hinted changes to the rotation are on the horizon in an effort to spark his team, which has failed to score 70 points in any of its five Big 12 losses. However, in advance of his 501st career game at West Virginia, Huggins opted for his team to do its work away from the court Thursday and reflect on what’s gone wrong since its last victory January 11 over Oklahoma State.
“I haven’t thought about lineup changes or any of that kind of thing,” he said. “We didn’t really practice [Thursday]. We watched game film and we talked about where we were and why we were where we were. Went out on the floor and walked through some things, but we didn’t do anything yesterday basketball wise. It was more of a mental day, which I needed.”
Despite WVU’s recent struggles, third-year Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman believes a tough challenge awaits his team on its floor.
“Coach Huggins is one of the best coaches that’s coached in college basketball. His teams are fundamentally sound, tough, hard-nosed and great offensive rebounding teams,” Musselman said. “They put pressure on you defensively to try to turn the ball over. They compete every night.”
The Mountaineers need to find a way to get their top offensive players — guards Taz Sherman and Sean McNeil — to play well in the same contest.
By and large, Sherman has struggled since returning from a COVID-19 related absence that forced him to miss the Big 12 opener at Texas. Although he’s averaging a team-high 18.5 points, Sherman’s average in his last six games is 13.7 points on 36.8 percent shooting.
McNeil has been held to 13 points on 3-of-13 shooting, including 1 for 7 on 3-pointers, over the last two games.
Forwards Jalen Bridges and Gabe Osabuohien were bright spots in the loss to the Sooners. Bridges finished with 12 points and six rebounds and has scored in double figures four of his last seven contests, while Osabuohien poured in a career-high 17 points against OU.
Saturday’s game carries extra significance for Osabuohien, who played his first two seasons at Arkansas. Osabuohien was dismissed from the Razorbacks’ program by Musselman in August 2019 before he coached a game at UA. Less than a week later, Osabuohien joined the Mountaineers, and he’s spent the last three seasons in Morgantown.
According to Huggins, Musselman and his staff helped Osabuohien find a new home in a quick manner.
“The coaching staff at Arkansas really helped Gabe to get eligible and not have to sit a year,” Huggins said.
Osabuohien has been a key reserve at West Virginia since his arrival, and Saturday marks his 76th game for the Mountaineers. The 6-foot-7 senior has assumed more of an expanded role in his final season of college basketball.
“Gabe loves to play the game. I’m sure it means something to him and probably a little more, but Gabe plays with great enthusiasm all the time,” Huggins said. “He’s not one of those guys who’s all excited one day and then in the dumps the next. He has a pretty constant demeanor and he’s grown up a lot. When we’re younger we have a tendency to make mistakes that you’re not going to make as you grow older. Gabe has really grown up. Not that he had a problem before, but he’s grown up into a man. He’s without question the leader of our basketball team.”
Arkansas has allowed at least 75 points in all five of its losses, including 80-plus in four. However, the Razorbacks have displayed dramatic defensive improvement during the ongoing win streak, surrendering less than 60 points in four games, and the only time an opponent surpassed that total was Texas A&M, which scored 73 in overtime and finished regulation with 64.
Huggins credits 6-10 sophomore Jaylin Williams as a key factor in the team’s improved defense.
“They’re really athletic and they can make plays that the normal human being can’t make, because they’re so athletic,” Huggins said. “The big kid has been terrific and really solidified their pick and roll defense. When you have a big that can stay in front of guards and change shots at the rim and do all the things he does, that’s a great weapon to have defensively.”
Williams is averaging nine points and 8.9 rebounds, one of six Razorbacks scoring at least nine on average. Guard JD Notae is the SEC’s leading scorer at 18.9 points and has registered double-figure scoring in all 19 appearances this season. Au’Diese Toney, a 6-6 Pitt transfer in his first season at Arkansas, is second in scoring at 10.7 points.
Fellow transfers Stanley Umude of South Dakota and Chris Lykes of Miami follow in scoring at 9.9 and 9.6 points, respectively. Umude is a 6-6 wing from South Dakota, while the diminutive Lykes, who stands 5-7, averaged at least 15 points each of three previous seasons for the Hurricanes.
Davonte Davis, a 6-4 sophomore, is fifth on the team in scoring at 9.3 points.
“They’re very talented and very athletic,” Huggins said. “I’ve known their coach and the family for ever and ever. I knew the coach’s dad very well and he used to work my dad’s camp. It’s a basketball family. He’s been around basketball his whole life and does a terrific job with them.”