Bob Huggins Previews Oklahoma
Norman, OK - The West Virginia Mountaineers (8-2, 1-1) seek their first Big 12 Conference road win of the season against the Oklahoma Sooners (5-2, 1-1) after dropping the first one to the third-ranked Kansas Jayhawks.
The Sooners won their Big 12 opener at TCU but dropped their second game of the season in their last outing to No. 13 Texas Tech 69-67 a week and a half ago on December 22nd. Oklahoma’s first loss of the season came in a 22-point drubbing by Xavier in just the third game of the season.
Oklahoma is second in the Big 12 Conference in scoring, averaging 82.7 points per game on 47.0% (4th Big 12) shooting from the field and 36.5% (3rd Big 12) from three-point range.
“They can make shots. They really make shots, and they get it away really quick. I mean, you got to close pretty quick on them. They bring a lot of issues to the table,” said West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins.
Senior guard Austin Reaves leads the Sooners in points (15.9), rebounds (5.1), and assists (5.7). Last season, he ended with a 41-point performance versus TCU and put up an encore performance in the Big 12 opener against the Horned Frogs. Reaves struggled against the Mountaineers last season, going just 4-17 from the field, including 1-6 from behind the arc in the two meetings, but had 13 points in the last meeting in Norman last year.
Senior forward Brady Manek (6’9”, 239-lbs) will look to bounce back after putting up two points in the loss to Texas Tech. He is averaging 14.6 points per game and, as a stretch-forward, is third in the conference in three-point percent at 43.9% per game.
“His release is probably as quick as anybody in the country,” said Huggins.
In seven games versus the Mountaineers, Manek is averaging 13.1 ppg, including a 22-point performance in the first round of the 2019 Big 12 Conference tournament.
However, the coaching staff's biggest concern is Sooners head coach Lon Kruger, who has a career winning percentage of 61.2% and a pair of Final Four appearances.
“I think the biggest problem is they got a heck of a coach. He’s got a great, I guess, imagination for seeing things that you don’t really have to be on the floor to see because of his background. Because of the fact, I think, that he was a great athlete in a lot of different areas,” said Huggins.
Oklahoma is 12-9 all-time versus West Virginia and has won three out of the last four meetings by an average margin of 11 points.
You can follow us for future coverage by clicking "Follow" on the page's top righthand corner. Also, be sure to like us on Facebook & Twitter:
Facebook - @WVUonSI
Twitter - @SI_WVU and Christopher Hall @WVHallBilly
