MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia’s road keeps getting harder.
The Mountaineers face yet another ranked opponent on Wednesday when they host No. 11 Iowa State at the WVU Coliseum. The Cyclones will be WVU’s fifth top-15 opponent in its last seven games when they tip off in Morgantown at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
It’s no secret among the Mountaineers that they are in this season’s crunch time. They currently sit four games short of their target number of 18 season wins as they look to build their NCAA Tournament resume.
WVU is squarely on the bubble according to bracketology experts, but its most recent blowout win over Oklahoma gave the squad enough of a boost to earn it a first-round bye. The Mountaineers are acutely aware of their standing in the field, and they know what defeating the Cyclones could do for them in a month.
“Every game is important from here on out, but…we’re in a good position right now I feel, even with our record not showing it, I feel like we’re in a good position right now,” said guard Joe Toussaint. “We steal this one tomorrow, we’re just helping ourselves.”
WVU’s recent strong stretch has been powered by a resurgence from leading scorer Erik Stevenson, who put up back-to-back 30-plus point games a the WVU Coliseum, a rarity in the history of that building. He hasn’t done it alone, though. Bench players, like Toussaint and freshman forward James Okonkwo, have all stepped up as well and were major pieces to WVU’s largest-ever victory over the Sooners.
“The fact of the matter is if everybody played to their potential, we’re really good,” said WVU coach Bob Huggins. “Everybody hasn’t.”
It does seem to be coming together at the right time for WVU, but they will have to prove that on Wednesday against TJ Otzelberger’s Cyclones, one of the more polished teams in the Big 12. Iowa State emphasizes defense and tops the league in points allowed, giving up 61 points per game.
Much of that is due to the Cyclones’ size, as they have a formidable frontcourt led by St. Bonaventure transfer Osun Osunniyi.
“Offensively, they run good stuff so they don’t put [themselves] in bad positions on transition,” Huggins said. “They’re a really good transition defensive team, and so everybody has to play against their set defense. And they’ve got really good shot-blockers.”
Tip-off between West Virginia and 11th-ranked Iowa State is set for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.