The DieHard Breakdown: WVU 96 Duquene 83

[WvuDieHard]

This was an up and down game for the Mountaineers who once again relied on strong guard play to grind out a victory. Erin Harris scores a career high 33 points to lead the Mountaineers and was joined by another career high in points from guard Jawan Staton, who tallied 28 points. I was very encouraged to see Devin Williams continue his path at the DI level as he tallied a double double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. This kid reminds me of a young Xavier McDaniel (ex-Seattle Supersonic)--a chiseled beast playing in the paint. This kid is the future of Mountaineer basketball as he will get better and better as the games go by. Rebounding is still a struggle for this squad as they lost the battle of the glass 39-30 but when you shoot 58% from the field you dont get as many offensive rebounding opportunities.

So in conclusion, a good effort but more people are going to have to step up when you get into conference play. Rebounding against bigger opponents in the Big 12 may prove to be a huge obstacle for this squad. Nonetheless, these Mountaineers are young and they are improving. A word of advice here to the Coaches, find a way to mentally prepare these guys so that we minimize the long droughts and loss of focus. It cost us against VT and it will again unless we learn that the game is 40 minutes and not 32. Next up Georgia Southern Thurs, at 7pm. Have a great day Mountaineer fans where ever your country road may take you.

 

[Anotherwvufan]

Thanks Die Hard. You give me a glimmer of hope for this team.

 

[JIMKOON]

This was an up and down game for the Mountaineers who once again relied on strong guard play to grind out a victory. Erin Harris scores a career high 33 points to lead the Mountaineers and was joined by another career high in points from guard Jawan Staton, who tallied 28 points. I was very encouraged to see Devin Williams continue his path at the DI level as he tallied a double double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. This kid reminds me of a young Xavier McDaniel (ex-Seattle Supersonic)--a chiseled beast playing in the paint. This kid is the future of Mountaineer basketball as he will get better and better as the games go by. Rebounding is still a struggle for this squad as they lost the battle of the glass 39-30 but when you shoot 58% from the field you dont get as many offensive rebounding opportunities.

So in conclusion, a good effort but more people are going to have to step up when you get into conference play. Rebounding against bigger opponents in the Big 12 may prove to be a huge obstacle for this squad. Nonetheless, these Mountaineers are young and they are improving. A word of advice here to the Coaches, find a way to mentally prepare these guys so that we minimize the long droughts and loss of focus. It cost us against VT and it will again unless we learn that the game is 40 minutes and not 32. Next up Georgia Southern Thurs, at 7pm. Have a great day Mountaineer fans where ever your country road may take you.

I'm trying very hard to buy into Huggins for another season, yet I look at the dismal recruiting the last 3 years, and, in my opinion, Huggins has lost something. Is it desire? Has he succumbed to just collecting his salary level he earned? Why can we not get the the high quality recruits? We have built grand facilities, invested heavily in the program, and the "build it and they will come" attitude has fallen flat on it's face. Why? Are we as fans missing something? Are we just willing to sit by and witness the sinking of our sports ship? I am seeing a complacency of failure here, and I don't think to be completely wrong. Too many times we have seen programs thriving on past laurels collapse upon themselves. Huggins WAS a great coach. He won a lot of games, had some great players, but he has lost something of that internal fire from within, and it shows in the level of players recruited, and their response on the court.

 

[WVUDAD]

I'm trying very hard to buy into Huggins for another season, yet I look at the dismal recruiting the last 3 years, and, in my opinion, Huggins has lost something. Is it desire? Has he succumbed to just collecting his salary level he earned? Why can we not get the the high quality recruits? We have built grand facilities, invested heavily in the program, and the "build it and they will come" attitude has fallen flat on it's face. Why? Are we as fans missing something? Are we just willing to sit by and witness the sinking of our sports ship? I am seeing a complacency of failure here, and I don't think to be completely wrong. Too many times we have seen programs thriving on past laurels collapse upon themselves. Huggins WAS a great coach. He won a lot of games, had some great players, but he has lost something of that internal fire from within, and it shows in the level of players recruited, and their response on the court.

Huggins made his fame at Cinci with local thug kids who could play ball, but did not qualify for bigger schools. He can not seem to recruit here at all, he did great with Beileins remaining players, but has fallen of greatly since.

 

[Anotherwvufan]

I would disagree with Dad here as Huggs best years at WVU were with Ebanks, Jones and Truck on the team. There would have been no final four without those guys.

Huggs has always made his fame by recruiting guys that were a risk. Many of the recruits the last couple of years have not made it or have been let loose for character problems.

Another problem for basketball is being in the B12. Huggs did very well out of New York when we were in the Big East. Tough sell to get kids who want to play near their hometown. Take out Madison Square Garden and we lost alot. Pitt now gets to play in the ACC and the ole Big East is dead. The sell is getting harder and harder for Huggs.

With only 9 scholarship players on the team it will be tough but I don't know of any other coach that can get one or two 4 star guys every year. Yes they will be the marginal ones, but with some success in recruiting, we still have a chance.

 

[WVUDAD]

The final four year was Huggins third year here, Butler, Smith, and a couple of the juniors were Beilein guys. Our record has gotten worse each year since. Without Butler there was no BE championship, and WVU doesnt get to the sweet 16.

 

[wvu_man]

Huggins has lost something. Is it desire? Has he succumbed to just collecting his salary level he earned?

I have to respectfully disagree with you Jim. There's not too many if any coachs out there that hates losing as much as Huggins. I don't think there's a chance in the world that he has lost his desire and is just collecting a salary. Has his hard-nosed, up in your face style of coaching become outdated? Maybe. But you can argue that case with just about any topic these days from raising a child to politics. Everybody wants to be coddled, pampered, politically correct without any kind of tough love. I guess what I'm saying is the pussification of America's youth probably has a lot to do recruiting these days. As a player, I really don't think you would have a problem with Hugg's if you would just do what he tells you to do and give 110%. How can past players like Butler, KJ, and Ruoff sing their praises about Huggs and other players hate playing for him? It sounds like an attitude problem to me and players not buying into his coaching stle. I honestly think this team is WAY better than last year and will only grow as the season goes on since we've cut ties with the cancerous attitudes from last year. I think that a lot of players are gonna feel the wrath from Huggs because of the new rules, getting into foul trouble, and a shallow bench. That may be a little unfair to them until they get adjusted to the new rules. I honestly think we'll make the tourney this year and will only get better for the next couple of years because we're so young...no seniors and only 2 juniors.

 

[JIMKOON]

I have to respectfully disagree with you Jim. There's not too many if any coachs out there that hates losing as much as Huggins. I don't think there's a chance in the world that he has lost his desire and is just collecting a salary. Has his hard-nosed, up in your face style of coaching become outdated? Maybe. But you can argue that case with just about any topic these days from raising a child to politics. Everybody wants to be coddled, pampered, politically correct without any kind of tough love. I guess what I'm saying is the pussification of America's youth probably has a lot to do recruiting these days. As a player, I really don't think you would have a problem with Hugg's if you would just do what he tells you to do and give 110%. How can past players like Butler, KJ, and Ruoff sing their praises about Huggs and other players hate playing for him? It sounds like an attitude problem to me and players not buying into his coaching stle. I honestly think this team is WAY better than last year and will only grow as the season goes on since we've cut ties with the cancerous attitudes from last year. I think that a lot of players are gonna feel the wrath from Huggs because of the new rules, getting into foul trouble, and a shallow bench. That may be a little unfair to them until they get adjusted to the new rules. I honestly think we'll make the tourney this year and will only get better for the next couple of years because we're so young...no seniors and only 2 juniors.

I understand what your saying, and there is a measure of agreement, but I'm tired of this "they are young" bull. This current roster, again, is not comprised of the elite type of athlete we maybe falsely, envisioned coming to WVU. Even with Huggins history of taking project players and turning them in to true competitors many times, something I felt was a positive for WVU, where has that attitude been for 3 years? Why are the departures greater than the arrivals in talent? There is just something wrong, and from all appearances, just as in our football team, it points directly at leadership.

The one thing I endorse in your comment, today's players come with a whole different attitude of entitlement, and we have now been witness to what, 2 or 3 coaches getting their walking papers for abusive conduct. I said it in another post, today, it takes a coach who can both encourage and scold, for team growth. The "in your face" coaches who cannot win on a consistent basis, will soon find their careers floating in Division III schools, attempting to rebuild character and dignity on a less pressure filled arena.

I bet Bear Bryant and Coach Rupp of past generations of successful careers, would not be so great today, because they were mean spirited coaches, who were forced to endure the integration of their sports by men of color. They were racists, they cursed, they belittled players and I will bet you, that somewhere in their past, they smacked a player or two around. We live in a different time, technology brings everything out so quickly, and it demands a completely different set of rules in dealing with these recruits. I don't think Bobby Huggins is adapting very well, and his brand of coaching style is sliding ever quicker down the tube of obscurity within the Big 12.

 

[wvu_man]

I would agree with that Jim. A comparable situation (since I'm a NY Giants fan) is Tom Coughlin. He realized that his old school approach wasn't working anymore. He adjusted, toned it down a notch or two and won 2 Super Bowls. I'm sure it takes a very good mixture of tough love and kindness to get through to players these days. I just read an article about the game yesterday on dailymail.com:

WVU Coach Bob Huggins was happy to see some of his returning players put the team on their backs to get the win. He wasn't too pleased, though, that some newcomers still hadn't gotten dialed in. He said that when he entered the locker room after the game, he asked which players read the scouting report and which watched the scouting video on their iPads. His five returning players, he said, were the only ones to raise their hands on both.
"The older guys know the consequences of not being prepared," Huggins said. "Our newcomers don't know that. You'd think they would learn by this point, but they haven't. So you have to keep grinding and grinding on them until they get it."

It seems like he has finally got through to the upperclassman. This is what I was talking about. Just do what he asks you to do and I guarantee he won't be shouting at you as often. Also, we are not the only ones who see improvement between last year and this years team:

Duquesne Coach Jim Ferry said he could tell his team had improved from last season, but the Mountaineers got better, too.
"I thought (Sunday) was the complete opposite of last year, when you had two teams that were bad and could not score," Ferry said. "Compared to this year, when you have a lot of offense on the floor. The kids played really hard and grinded back, making it close in the second half. In the end, we could not sustain it."

I know early in the season but at least we have some guys who can score this year. Our leading scorer last year was Harris (I think) with 10 per game?? Also, it looks like the coaches have realized that the rule changes will benefit slashing/driving type players. Staten drew a ton of fouls last night by driving to the basket. Now, if he/rest of the team could hit those freebies (Team FT's...20/34 or 58% last night)

 

[JIMKOON]

I would agree with that Jim. A comparable situation (since I'm a NY Giants fan) is Tom Coughlin. He realized that his old school approach wasn't working anymore. He adjusted, toned it down a notch or two and won 2 Super Bowls. I'm sure it takes a very good mixture of tough love and kindness to get through to players these days. I just read an article about the game yesterday on dailymail.com:



It seems like he has finally got through to the upperclassman. This is what I was talking about. Just do what he asks you to do and I guarantee he won't be shouting at you as often. Also, we are not the only ones who see improvement between last year and this years team:



I know early in the season but at least we have some guys who can score this year. Our leading scorer last year was Harris (I think) with 10 per game?? Also, it looks like the coaches have realized that the rule changes will benefit slashing/driving type players. Staten drew a ton of fouls last night by driving to the basket. Now, if he/rest of the team could hit those freebies (Team FT's...20/34 or 58% last night)

Look historically at Huggins teams foul shooting percentages. It just doesn't appear to be a strong coaching tool for him, yet I believe in his playing days at WVU, was he not only scrappy, but an above average foul shooter. If you look at the Pro's, there isn't a real strong push in foul shooting either. Such a shame because it is an art, and it can win games!!!!!

 

[wvu_man]

If you look at the Pro's, there isn't a real strong push in foul shooting either. Such a shame because it is an art, and it can win games!!!!!

So true Jim...I guess the reason why there's no push for foul shooting in the NBA is because they don't shoot many...no defense...haha. The only time they shoot FT's is when they call a charge and they're putting an end to that with the "flopping" call lol. My biggest fear is that college basketball will become more like the NBA with this new rule change...all offense, no defense, and 110-124 final score's. I quit watching NBA in the mid to late 90's and would rather do "honey do's" than watch it on TV

 

[WvuDieHard]

Guys, Bob Huggins is a damn good coach--don't ever waiver into believing he is not. Huggs is also a very good person and I know that first hand. Which leads to a reason as to why the recruiting has fallen off. I think the people around Huggs are parasites not worth a grain of salt. Harrison is Ok but the rest of them are junk. Yet Huggs keeps them around because he is a loyal guy. Huggins needs to get better recruiters and get them on the staff if he wants to bring in the real talent. Now when I say talent, I am not talking about physical talent as much as I am talking about mental talent. We need smart players that understand the fundamentals of the game. I have seen some really dumb shit in the last 5 years. The worst is a player who doesn't know who the shooter on the other team is late in a half or late in the game. I have seen us leave the best 3 point shooter open late in tight games. That is what is beating WV more than anything ---basketball IQ my brothers.

 

[JIMKOON]

Guys, Bob Huggins is a damn good coach--don't ever waiver into believing he is not. Huggs is also a very good person and I know that first hand. Which leads to a reason as to why the recruiting has fallen off. I think the people around Huggs are parasites not worth a grain of salt. Harrison is Ok but the rest of them are junk. Yet Huggs keeps them around because he is a loyal guy. Huggins needs to get better recruiters and get them on the staff if he wants to bring in the real talent. Now when I say talent, I am not talking about physical talent as much as I am talking about mental talent. We need smart players that understand the fundamentals of the game. I have seen some really dumb shit in the last 5 years. The worst is a player who doesn't know who the shooter on the other team is late in a half or late in the game. I have seen us leave the best 3 point shooter open late in tight games. That is what is beating WV more than anything ---basketball IQ my brothers.

I agree WVUDieHard, our team has certainly lacked in basketball IQ charts for the last two seasons really. My father and Huggins father are best friends, so I know him pretty darn well myself, and you could be correct, the parasitical aspect is one that we don't often see, but it IS there, in all programs. I do believe Huggins was once a very very good coach, but the times are passing his style of coaching by. And his trust factor when it comes to the men he has surrounded himself with, players even, is becoming more questionable. We will never win consistently with the players limited in basketball IQ, or troubling character issues. That seems to be the norm more so now, than ever in the past. The players being brought in just plain don't respect the man we know, they scoff at him, do there own thing. Huggins winning has sometimes been at some cost, and while his wins have mounted to Hall of Fame numbers, at what time, age even, do those numbers become the what has been, versus the what can be, based on his technique of coaching. The older a coach gets, the farther he seems to be removed with the times. Can he change his style? Plenty of long time coaches, in many different sports, have, but it's just not very often anymore. I would prefer Huggins to go out on top, not struggling himself into a stroke. His weight really bothers me, because I know what I abused my body with in weight and food. I am paying the price for that now, and I don't want anybody, not even an enemy to suffer like this. Bobby Huggins is a ticking time bomb physically. I respect where he has been, what he has done, but that is not translating into success on the court, right now. Can it change, sure can. Can Huggins do it, that is the only unresolved issue in my mind, can he?

 

[WvuDieHard]

Well Huggins depends on Martin and Billy "I'll take another Scotch and Water" Hahn to recruit and they suck. Neither one of those clowns could carry my jock much less represent WVU on the recruiting trail. In my opinion, this is the issue. I can't be any more straight and forward than that.

 

[WvuDieHard]

Jim --your father must surely be familiar with the "barn"? I have heard many stories about the "barn".

 

[JIMKOON]

Jim --your father must surely be familiar with the "barn"? I have heard many stories about the "barn".

I cannot recall him speaking about the "barn", and Rev. Koon has Parkinson's and a failing memory. He still speaks of his time working with the basketball team at the old fieldhouse sometimes, but they are disconnected memories. I actually attended many games in that old building. Was at the Pitt game the night of the big fight. It was funny and scary, Pitt fans were nuts. Saw a Pitt fan knockout a Mountaineer fan three rows in front of us.

 

[WvuDieHard]

Seeing a Pitt fan knock out a Mountaineer fan would have had me in the melee. No the Barn was a gathering place out on a farm where Huggins played basketball as a kid outside of Morgantown. The old timers remembered that place very well.

 

[ralphiewvu]

Teams 2-1, 19 more wins and we are in the tournament. That's all I care bout gentlemen.

Let's argue about this team when they are 4-7. (Fucking football team)

 

[WvuDieHard]

This team better be ready to play some defense tonight or they will lose to Georgia Southern who is 11th in the country averaging 98 points a game. This team took Miami to OT before losing in the waning seconds 81-80. That should tell you all you need to know.