West Virginia vs. No. 22 Kansas Preview & Game Thread

The West Virginia Mountaineers (10-5, 1-1) host the No. 22 Kansas Jayhawks (11-4, 1-1) Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is set for Noon EST and the action will be televised on FOX.

West Virginia captured its first league win Tuesday night against Cincinnati 62-60. Senior guard Honor Huff recorded his fourth 24-point game of the season, hitting 6-10 from three-point range, with a team-high eight rebounds. Senior forward Chance Moore produced his seventh double figure output with 14 points, and Treysen Eaglestaff came up with 10 big points.

Huff averages a team-best 17.1 points per game and his 60 made threes on the season ranks second in the country.

Moore is second on the team in scoring, averaging 13.0 ppg and a team-high 6.0 rebounds per game and senior forward Brenen Lorient rounds out a trio of Mountaineers averaging double figures at 10.1 ppg while corralling 5.5 rebounds per game.

Kansas fell to UCF in the Big 12 opener 81-75, marking the second consecutive season the Jayhawks lost a season opener after WVU ended a 33-year league opening KU winning streak last year.

The Jayhawks bounced back at home in a 104-100 overtime win against TCU. Freshman guard Darryn Peterson led all scorers with a career and game-high 32 points, despite not playing in OT due to cramps. Senior guard Tre White put in 22 points while senior guard Melvin Council Jr, produced 18 points and sophomore forward Flory Bidunga recorded 16 points and a game-high nine rebounds.

Although he’s only appeared in six games due to lingering injuries, Peterson leads the team in scoring, averaging 22.5 ppg.

White is second on the team in scoring (15.0 ppg) and rebounding (7.1 rpg). His 22 points against the Horned Frogs matched a season-high in the loss to No. 5 Duke earlier in the season. In 15 appearances, he’s reached double figures in 13 contests.

Bidunga is averaging a team-best 9.1 rebounds per game while ranking third on the team in scoring at 14.3 ppg. He has five double doubles on the season. He notched a career-high 25 points against Princeton and snagged a personal best 14 rebounds versus Syracuse.

Council leads the team in assists, averaging 5.1 apg and rounds out the four Jayhawks averaging double figures at 13.7 ppg.

Kansas leads the all-time series 21-8. West Virginia is 7-4 at home against the Jayhawks.

GAME THREAD

WVU starting lineup: Senior guard Honor Huff, senior guard Jasper Floyd, senior forward Brenen Lorient, senior forward Treysen Eaglestaff, and center Harlan Obioha.

Kansas starting lineup: Senior guard Tre White, senior guard Melvin Council Jr., freshman guard Darryn Peterson, freshman forward Byrson Tiller, and sophomore forward Flory Bidunga.

U16 Timeout: WVU leads 9-8. Huff buried his first three to give WVU an early 5-2 edge and is one of four Mountaineers on the board.

U12 Timeout: Kansas has taken the lead 15-13. The Jayhawks led by many as four, but Lorient hits a post hook in the paint and draws the foul to head into the break. He leads the Mountaineers with four points.

U8 Timeout: WVU has regained the lead. The Mountaineers are heating up from the outside and have hit three consecutive threes for a 30-28 advantage.

U4 Timeout: West Virginia still holds a two-point edge, 32-30. Lorient leads all scores with nine points.

HALFTIME: Kansas leads 43-39. Lorient, along with Kansas' Peterson, leads all scorers with 16 points. Both squads have been efficient from the field. The Jayhawks are 17-32 from the floor, but have been held in check from three-point range (2-10). WVU is 13-26 from the field, including 6-14 from behind the arc.

U16 Timeout: The Jayhawks bult their largest lead of seven after a pair of Mitchell threes, but WVU battle back to get back within two. Nonetheless, Kansas extends the lad back to six, 55-49.

U12 Timeout: The Jayhawks extended their lead to eight, but the Mountaineers are on a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to one, with Jasper Floyd leading the way with back-to-back buckets and will head to line for a chance to tie the game out of the break.

U4 Timeout: WVU leads 64-37. The Mountaineers led by as many as 12 before the Jayhawks began to make a push.

FINAL: West Virginia, Kansas. WVU's Huff and Kansas' Peterson led all scores with 23 points. Harlan Obioha recorded his second double double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Brenen Lorient finished with 18 points and Eaglestaff had 12.

GAME THREAD

MORE STORIES FROM WEST VIRGINIA ON SI