GAME NOTES: Bob Huggins aims for his 700th career victory tonight, as his West Virginia Mountaineers are set to tangle with the Missouri State Bears at Orleans Arena as part of the Las Vegas Classic.
Missouri State has won its last three games to move to 7-3 overall, and the most recent triumph came on Monday by a 66-53 final over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Tonight's contest marks the first of the season on a neutral court for the Bears.
As for West Virginia, it is off to an 8-2 start under Huggins, who preaches tough defense and physical play. The team is riding a four-game win streak that includes a 72-53 victory over Tennessee Tech on Monday. WVU has played two neutral-site affairs so far this season, both of which have resulted in wins.
This game marks the first-ever meeting between the Mountaineers and Bears on the hardwood.
The Bears have held all 10 of their opponents this season below 43 percent shooting from the field and they own the top field goal percentage defense (.364) in the Missouri Valley Conference. Missouri State is permitting only 58.5 ppg while scoring 68.7 ppg, and there are two double-digit scorers on the roster. Kyle Weems provides 14.6 ppg despite his 39.8 percent shooting from the floor, and he is tops on the boards as well (7.5 rpg). Caleb Patterson checks in with 12.9 ppg, and he scored 13 points in the win over Texas A&M- Corpus Christi. Christian Kirk added 13 points as well for the Bears, who received 11 points apiece from Weems and Corey Copeland. Missouri State played stellar defense in that affair, forcing 18 turnovers while holding Corpus Christi to 34 percent shooting from the floor. A 43-32 rebounding advantage obviously helped the cause as well.
Kevin Jones has been tremendous for West Virginia this season, as he is scoring 20.8 ppg on 56.4 percent shooting from the field. Much more than just a scorer, Jones is ripping down 11.3 rpg. Darryl Bryant provides 16.5 ppg for the Mountaineers, who are getting 12.2 ppg and 6.6 rpg from Deniz Kilicli. WVU is generating 77.5 ppg while holding opponents to 64.5 ppg on 41.1 percent field goal efficiency. Against Tennessee Tech last time out, Jones poured in 25 points to go along with 14 rebounds. Bryant added 15 points and Kilicli pitched in 12 points for the Mountaineers, who earned narrow advantages in rebounds and points from the foul line. More importantly, they limited Tech to 33.9 percent shooting from the field, including 6.7 percent from three-point range.
Expect WVU to take care of business tonight, as Jones is playing at an exceptionally high level. Expect another big performance from the star forward.
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