PREVIEW: Mountaineers Hunting for First win in Nearly a Month vs. Cyclones

The West Virginia Mountaineers (13-9, 2-7) are desperately seeking a win after dropping its seventh consecutive game Saturday afternoon and welcome an Iowa State Cyclones team (16-7, 3-7) Tuesday night at 7:00 and is streaming on ESPN+.

T.J. Otzelberger is in his first year at the helm in Ames. He had two previous stops with the program as an assistant from 2006-2013 and 2015-16 before earning his first head coaching gig at South Dakota State. He won two regular season titles, a conference tournament championship, and made three postseason appearances during his stint. Then, he took over UNLV for two seasons and was on the brink of turning the historic program around before returning to Iowa State.

The Cyclones got off to a hot start in year one, cruising to 12 consecutive wins, including knocking off nationally-ranked Xavier, and followed it with a won over a top 10 Memphis team behind a stingy defense, holding opponents to 56.1 points per game and vaulting them to eighth in the country.

"They're playing 1-3-1. They're playing 1-1-3. They're playing man. They're pressing some - ¾ court pressing and full court pressing," said West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins. "That's what he does. That's his personality."

The Cyclones hit the Big 12 Conference wall, starting 2-5 before notching a win at Oklahoma State and stifled Mizzou 67-50 in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. However, they're coming into the game having endured back-to-back losses.

In league play, opponent points per game have jumped up to 68.0 ppg, and a Cyclone defense that was holding the opposition to 36.9% from the field in the first 12 games has climbed to 48.0%, ranking last in the Big 12.

However, Iowa State has consistency in Penn State transfer Isaiah Brockington. The senior is playing his way into Big 12 Player of the Year contention, sitting atop of the conference with seven double doubles, and his eight 20-point performances are tied with West Virginia guard Taz Sherman, and his team-leading 16.9 ppg ranks fourth in the league.

"Brockington has had a heck of a year. He's really played well for them. He's big-time athletic," said Huggins. "He can make athletic plays, and since he's went there [Iowa State], he's shooting the ball so much better. He's shooting the ball better than he shot it at Penn State, and he can create his own [shot]."

Guards Tyrese Hunter and Gabe Kalscheur combine for 20.4 ppg.

The Cyclones have similar issues as the Mountaineers. The two have struggled to find production in the frontcourt, and both are in the negative column in rebounding margin ranking near the bottom.

West Virginia is awaiting the return of its leading scorer Taz Sherman. He suffered a concussion in the loss to Baylor last Monday and remained sidelined in Saturday's seven-point loss to Texas Tech, where the team shot a mere 4-32 from the field in the second half.

Senior guard Sean McNeil has been the most consistent scorer outside of Sherman. He was averaging 15.4 points in his first five conference games but hit a lull scoring seven points in three consecutive games before scoring 14 and 16 points in his last two outings, respectively. Conversely, forward Gabe Osabuohine has upped his production, averaging 9.0 points and 6.3 rebounds in the last four games, but it's been his defensive tenacity that's kept the Mountaineers within striking distance.

West Virginia is 11-8 all-time versus Iowa State and has won the last five meetings.

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