PREVIEW: West Virginia Faces UAB

The Mountaineers welcome in one of the top scoring teams in the country

Morgantown, WV - The West Virginia Mountaineers (7-2) host the University of Alabama at Birmingham Blazers (7-1) Saturday at 6:00 p.m. EST and will stream on ESPN+.

UAB returns for starters from a team that claimed the 2022 Conference USA Championship. The Blazers rank fourth nationally in scoring, averaging 90.1 points per game behind the nation’s leading scorer, senior guard Jordan Walker, who is averaging 25.7 ppg.

WVU head coach Bob Huggins noted Walker’s speed when previewing the Blazers. The Mountaineers held Walker to 12 points in the win last season in Birmingham and Huggins credited guard Kedrian Johnson’s defensive effort.

“I think Kedy can match his speed,” said Huggins. “I mean, he just runs away from people and Kedy did a great job of staying on him – Kedy has the same speed up and down the floor.”

Senior forward KJ Buffin leads the team in rebounds at 7.3 per game and is second on the team in scoring, with 10.4 ppg while LSU transfer guard Eric Gaines dishes a team-leading 5.4 assists per game and is third in scoring, averaging 10.1 ppg.

Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports

As much success as the Blazers have had on the offensive end of the floor, Huggins believes the change on defense has elevated their play.

“I think defensively they’re a whole better team and I think changing defenses has been good for them,” he said. “I think their pressure is a whole better.”

“They weren’t a great man-to-man team a year ago, so they’re playing some 1-3-1, dropping into a 2-3, they’re playing some 1-2-2 three-quarter stuff falling back into a 2-3 and they’ve got great size on the baseline,” continued Huggins.

West Virginia has four Mountaineers averaging double figures led by guard Erik Stevenson. 14.2 ppg followed by forward Tre Mitchell with 12.9 ppg while forward Jimmy Bell is grabbing a team-best 5.4 rebounds per game. 

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