PREVIEW: West Virginia Faces K-State in the First Round of the Big 12 Tournament

West Virginia looks to keep its season alive as the Mountaineers (15-16, 4-14) take on the Kansas State Wildcats (16-14, 6-12) Wednesday night at seven in the opening round of the Big 12 Conference Tournament.

Kansas State had won four of its last five games after a comeback win over the Mountaineers in mid-February, improving to 14-11 on the year, and was on the cusp of solidifying its NCAA Tournament bid, but they have been winless since, coming into the postseason on a five-game losing streak.

Prior to the five-game skid, Kansas State was allowing 64.4 points per game, but the Wildcats have given up an average of 81.8 ppg in the last five games.

Head coach Bruce Weber cited the lack of communication but also mentioned the rigorous schedule of the Big 12 may have taken a toll on his team.

“I don’t know what happened in that stretch, maybe the whole season is taking a toll on our guys physically and mentally, but I hope they find it within themselves to come back and play at a high-level Wednesday night,” stated Weber.

Kansas State guard Nijel Pack leads the team in scoring, averaging 17.4 points per game, up from 12.7 ppg from a season ago during his freshman campaign to earn Big 12 Conference Most Improved Player and good enough for First Team All-Big 12.

Guards Markquis Nowell and Mark Smith both average 12.6 points per game apiece. Smith averaged a team-leading 8.6 rebounds per game and earned a spot on the All-Big 12 Third Team, while Nowell’s team-best 5.1 assists per game earned him Big 12 Honorable Mention.

West Virginia ended its seven-game losing streak with a win over TCU on Saturday. The Mountaineers endured seven-game skids twice, but the effort never wavered, and they are eager to get postseason play underway.

“They were great yesterday,” said West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins. They’re enthusiastic – they’re excited about playing.”

West Virginia is led by senior Taz Sherman. He is second in the league in scoring at 18.4 points per game and did it while managing multiple injuries during the season, earning All-Big 12 Conference Second Team.

Guard Sean McNeil is averaging 12.2 points per game and was voted to All-Big 12 Honorable Mention.

The guards will play a pivotal role, but forward Pauly Paulicap has emerged, providing some production in the paint, scoring a season-high 10 points last week versus Oklahoma.

“It seemed like early on we missed like 20 one-footers a game,” said Huggins. “Pauly’s the one guy that kind of took it to heart and worked on it every day. He’s the guy we’ve been throwing the ball to when we’ve needed something close. He’s been our most consistent scorer from two feet an in.”

West Virginia is 14-9 all-time versus Kansas State, including 1-0 in the Big 12 Conference Tournament.

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