The Five Things That Must Happen for West Virginia to Stun No. 2 Iowa State

Breaking down the keys to the game for West Virginia on Saturday.

Schuyler Callihan | Jan 17, 2025

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West Virginia Mountaineers

The opportunity for another signature win awaits Darian DeVries and the West Virginia Mountaineers this Saturday as they get set to host No. 2 Iowa State inside the WVU Coliseum.

WVU has lost just one time this season at home, and if they want to keep that total at just one loss, they will need an exceptional effort from every player that touches the floor and every fan in the stands.

Iowa State is "Final Four" good, according to DeVries, but I would go a step further and say they are a national championship-caliber team. They do just about everything well.

Offensively, they get to the line at a high rate (24.6 attempts/game), shoot the three-ball efficiently (35.7%), share the ball (16.8 assists/game), take care of the rock (10.1 turnovers/game), and average 85.4 points per contest, which ranks eighth nationally.

Defensively, they are just as sharp. The Cyclones are allowing just 65.3 points, with their opponents shooting just 40.7% from the field. They don't commit a ton of fouls either, which decreases the amount of points a team can rack up on them at the free-throw line.

So, how in the world can the Mountaineers stun Iowa State?

Key No. 1: Transition defense

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West Virginia did a pretty decent job limiting the turnovers against a stingy and aggressive Houston defense earlier this week. The problem with the 12 turnovers is that it turned into 25 points in the other direction. The Cougs pushed the ball up the floor and even knocked down a couple of threes following a West Virginia turnover.

Iowa State comes into the game ranked 29th nationally in fastbreak points per game (14.8 ppg). Taking exceptional care of the ball is priority number one, but getting back and stopping the fastbreak is just as critical.

Key No. 2: Eliminate the silly fouls

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Iowa State is going to get to the free-throw line regardless. They've done it all year; there is no need to help them get to the bonus (our double bonus, for that matter) even faster. While there have already been a handful of games in conference play where WVU doesn't seem to have a favorable whistle, they're also not giving themselves a good reputation with the constant reach-ins, grabbing, and silly fouls far away from the basket.

Gifting one of the most high-powered offenses in the nation free points is asking for trouble. If they're going to get to the line, which they will, they need to earn it. Aside from giving them opportunities at the free throw line, it's important that WVU has all of its rotation available late in the second half.

Key No. 3: Control the pace

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WVU alters the way it wants to attack offensively depending on the opponent. Some games, they want to slow things down like they did against Kansas, and there will be times they will want to play fast, which is what they did in last Sunday's win over Colorado. This isn't one where you want to get in an up-and-down affair. That's catering to the Cyclones' style of play, and WVU just doesn't have the depth to play that way effectively for forty minutes.

I expect it to be a very similar game plan to the one they had against Kansas - walk the ball up, drain the shot clock, and be calculated in their shot attempts. By not exerting as much energy offensively, it will allow WVU to sit down and play with an extra bounce in their step against one of the best offenses in the nation.

Key No. 4: Three in double figures

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In eleven of West Virginia's 12 wins, three or more players reached double figures in scoring. The only game they were able to win and didn't accomplish that feat was against Oklahoma State, although Jonathan Powell was one point away from being the third double-digit scorer. For the season, WVU is 11-1 when three or more reach 10+. The only loss came against Louisville, which was a game that went to overtime.

Not only does having three in double figures mean West Virginia is doing a good job of sharing the ball, but it also means Javon Small isn't carrying the entire load. If two others can knock down shots, it will open up more looks or one-on-one opportunities for Small to go to work.

Key No. 5: A raucous crowd