Post by rainman on Dec 5, 2007 6:55:36 GMT -5
WVU men take on Auburn tonight
By Mickey Furfari
For the Times West Virginian
MORGANTOWN— West Virginia (5-1) plays Auburn (4-1) in men’s basketball on tonight at Birmingham, Ala.
It is the nightcap of the inaugural Pizza Hut SEC/Big East Invitational, and will be televised nationally by ESPN2 with the tip-off at 9:30 p.m. Georgetown meets Alabama in the opening game at 7 on ESPN.
WVU coach Bob Huggins said Tuesday that the Tigers are playing small, but that 6-7 junior forward Korvotney Barber is returning to the starting lineup which also includes four guards.
“I think this team plays a lot like a Villanova,” he explained. “They try to spread you, and they get great spacing. They try to beat you off the dribble a lot. They play up-tempo. So this is the type of game you want to play.”
Although they have yet to play a Big East team, the Mountaineers lead the conference in scoring offense, scoring margin, field-goal percentage defense, and three-point field goals made. WVU is second in field-goal percentage and blocked shots.
Four starters are averaging double digits in scoring. Alex Ruoff, 6-6 guard, leads the way at 14.8. Joe Alexander, 6-8 forward, is next at 13.8 and has a team-best 7.8 rebounds per game.
Da’Sean Butler, 6-7 forward, is scoring at a 12.0 clip and 6-3 guard Darris Nichols at 10.7. Jamie Smalligan, 7-0 center, is averaging 5.2 points and 2.7 rebounds.
Coach Jeff Lebo has back all five starters, plus eight other lettermen, from last year’s squad which posted a 17-15 record, including 7-9 in the SEC.
Barber leads the Tigers in both scoring (16.2) and rebounding (8.2). The four guards are 6-4 senior Frank Tolbert (12.2, 4.6), 6-1 sophomore DeWayne Reed (9.8, 2.6), 6-5 junior Rasheem Barrett (13.4, 4.0), and 6-3 Quantez Robertson (7.8, 5.4).
Auburn has won four in a row since dropping a 77-62 decision at Tulane in the Nov. 9 season’s opener. The victories were over Kennesaw State 74-62, Alabama State 63-60, Southern 89-59 and George Washington 74-70.
Huggins said, “I think that that the more you see there are a lot of ways to play the game, the better your offense becomes and the more you’re able to attack.”
A large crowd is expected for the two-conference doubleheader in Birmingham. It is something that should help the Mountaineers in playing before a loud gathering on a neutral floor.
“In reality, most of the guys have been (in that environment) previously,” Huggins noted. “But the young kids haven’t.
“We’re just going to have to see how things go down there. We’re not going to make any drastic changes. But if we find however we’re playing is not working, we’ll make adjustments.”
West Virginia is 4-5 all-time in games played in Alabama, including 4-2 in Birmingham. Auburn leads the WVU series by a 2-1 margin.
The Mountaineers will play Duquesne at home on Saturday night, then take time off for final exams.
By Mickey Furfari
For the Times West Virginian
MORGANTOWN— West Virginia (5-1) plays Auburn (4-1) in men’s basketball on tonight at Birmingham, Ala.
It is the nightcap of the inaugural Pizza Hut SEC/Big East Invitational, and will be televised nationally by ESPN2 with the tip-off at 9:30 p.m. Georgetown meets Alabama in the opening game at 7 on ESPN.
WVU coach Bob Huggins said Tuesday that the Tigers are playing small, but that 6-7 junior forward Korvotney Barber is returning to the starting lineup which also includes four guards.
“I think this team plays a lot like a Villanova,” he explained. “They try to spread you, and they get great spacing. They try to beat you off the dribble a lot. They play up-tempo. So this is the type of game you want to play.”
Although they have yet to play a Big East team, the Mountaineers lead the conference in scoring offense, scoring margin, field-goal percentage defense, and three-point field goals made. WVU is second in field-goal percentage and blocked shots.
Four starters are averaging double digits in scoring. Alex Ruoff, 6-6 guard, leads the way at 14.8. Joe Alexander, 6-8 forward, is next at 13.8 and has a team-best 7.8 rebounds per game.
Da’Sean Butler, 6-7 forward, is scoring at a 12.0 clip and 6-3 guard Darris Nichols at 10.7. Jamie Smalligan, 7-0 center, is averaging 5.2 points and 2.7 rebounds.
Coach Jeff Lebo has back all five starters, plus eight other lettermen, from last year’s squad which posted a 17-15 record, including 7-9 in the SEC.
Barber leads the Tigers in both scoring (16.2) and rebounding (8.2). The four guards are 6-4 senior Frank Tolbert (12.2, 4.6), 6-1 sophomore DeWayne Reed (9.8, 2.6), 6-5 junior Rasheem Barrett (13.4, 4.0), and 6-3 Quantez Robertson (7.8, 5.4).
Auburn has won four in a row since dropping a 77-62 decision at Tulane in the Nov. 9 season’s opener. The victories were over Kennesaw State 74-62, Alabama State 63-60, Southern 89-59 and George Washington 74-70.
Huggins said, “I think that that the more you see there are a lot of ways to play the game, the better your offense becomes and the more you’re able to attack.”
A large crowd is expected for the two-conference doubleheader in Birmingham. It is something that should help the Mountaineers in playing before a loud gathering on a neutral floor.
“In reality, most of the guys have been (in that environment) previously,” Huggins noted. “But the young kids haven’t.
“We’re just going to have to see how things go down there. We’re not going to make any drastic changes. But if we find however we’re playing is not working, we’ll make adjustments.”
West Virginia is 4-5 all-time in games played in Alabama, including 4-2 in Birmingham. Auburn leads the WVU series by a 2-1 margin.
The Mountaineers will play Duquesne at home on Saturday night, then take time off for final exams.
