What the ESPN BPI Says About WVU vs. UMass

Can the Mountaineers get back to .500?

Josh Eilert went from having absolutely no bench with just a six-man rotation to having a plethora of options thanks to the return of Akok Akok (medical) and Kerr Kriisa (suspension) and the additions of RaeQuan Battle and Noah Farrakhan who no longer have to sit out a year to be eligible.

It's been a tough start to the season for the Mountaineers, but they can turn their season around quickly and it all starts Saturday evening in the Basketball Hall of Fame Classic against Frank Martin's UMass Minutemen.

According to the ESPN BPI, West Virginia has a 49.2% chance to win the game while UMass has a 50.8% chance.

The Minutemen enter tonight's matchup with a 5-2 record with their two losses to Harvard and Towson coming by a combined 13 points. The biggest issue UMass has dealt with this year is the battle at the free throw line - it's gone against them both ways. As a team, they are shooting just 63% from the charity stripe while allowing 26.1 free throw attempts per game to their opponents which ranks 343rd out of 362 Division I teams.

I understand this game is technically in UMass' backyard, but the reinforcements that the Mountaineers will welcome back will play a huge difference in this game. All of a sudden they can play at a much faster tempo offensively and they will have fresher legs in the second half of games. I'm honestly shocked WVU isn't the favorite on ESPN.

Battle, Farrakhan to Choose to Dress, be Available vs. UMass

You can follow us for future coverage by liking us on Facebook & following us on X:

Facebook - @MountaineersNow

X - @MountaineersNow and Schuyler Callihan at @Callihan_.