Good setup for WVU to get off the bubble

Heading into the final weekend of the college basketball regular season, there are still some teams trying to secure NCAA Tournament bids. One of those teams is West Virginia.

The Mountaineers sit at 17-13 and just 6-11 in the Big 12. While the metrics love West Virginia, which still ranks in the top 20 on KenPom, the Mountaineers might need one more quality win to go dancing. They will get that opportunity on Saturday when Kansas State visits Morgantown.

That sets up as a good spot for the Mountaineers. Six of Kansas State’s seven losses have come away from home. In those six road losses, the normally stout Wildcats defense allowed an average of 79.6 points.

The matchup is even on paper, but one area in which the Mountaineers have a big edge is offensive rebounding. West

Virginia ranks 26th in offensive rebounding percentage and the smaller Kansas State frontline can get pushed around in the paint.

Look for both teams to shoot a lot of free throws, too. They each foul a lot because of their aggressive defenses and both offenses rank in the top 40 in freethrow attempts per game. The first time they played, the two teams combined to shoot 72 foul shots but made just 41. West Virginia shot only 52 percent from the line, which is surprising since the Mountaineers have shot 73 percent as a team this season.

Kansas State won the first meeting, on Dec. 31, in overtime. Look for another competitive contest this time around, but expect a desperate West Virginia squad to get the win on its home floor and move one step closer to an NCAA Tournament bid.

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