MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — Maybe it was the eight months of missing college basketball.
Maybe it was the preseason hype that came with West Virginia getting ranked No. 15 in the country.
Or maybe it was just some sort of misplaced belief that got us thinking that this group of Mountaineers could maybe be a little different than what we previously had seen and known.
You know, maybe a little more polished and refined. A little more white-collar, perhaps, rather than gritty.
You probably heard the talk of guys getting better and becoming better shooters. Then you start thinking about space opening up down low for Derek Culver and Oscar Tshiebwe, not to mention how much they improved their games in the offseason, and your mind begins to wander a little bit about seeing a skilled team that runs like a thing of beauty and is nearly impossible to defend.
You actually may have seen that team Thursday, but only if you switched your TV earlier in the day to watch No. 1 Gonzaga dissect Kansas.
The top-ranked Bulldogs, who WVU will play next week in Indianapolis, are that skillful team with shooters and drivers and big men who can move and play away from the rim.
And they all seem to move in unison. It’s almost relaxing to the eyes to take it in.
That is not who West Virginia is, at least that isn’t what we’ve seen yet through the first two games of the Crossover Classic, which includes Thursday’s 78-66 win against Virginia Commonwealth to advance to Friday’s championship game against Western Kentucky.
“We’re not quite as seasoned as maybe some of the other people are,” WVU head coach Bob Huggins said.
West Virginia is tough and plays with a purpose to sort of muddy up the court with chaos and then will usually come out on top, because Huggins has the stronger and more determined players.
That’s where 40 offensive rebounds and 90 rebounds over the team’s first two games come into play.
Right now, West Virginia’s best play may be to miss a shot, because it’s got the guys in Culver and Tshiebwe to go get it.
For most of last season, that was certainly one of the Mountaineers’ best options.
If you’re top priority is winning games, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, either.
Is it pretty? No. Is it always fun to watch? Not really.
It works and it’s worked against some of the top teams in the country through the years and could very well pose some sort of problems for Gonzaga next week. But, that is next week.
Culver is averaging 14.5 rebounds per game so far. Tshiebwe had 16 of them against the Rams.
They have not yet developed the finely-tuned offensive cohesion, but they are protecting the rim and forcing opponents to think twice before driving the ball inside.
That may matter even more than how much offense they can generate.
“Oscar is going to be a factor, regardless,” Culver said. “He’s still going to demand respect in the post. They can’t really double-team me or else I can just dish it to him.”
And this is by no means suggesting WVU players won’t improve as the season progresses.
The offense will begin to run a little more smoothly. It always does. WVU’s outside shooters may begin to show a little more consistency.
Just get any thoughts of WVU being a top-15 team nationally, because it is some type of pretty boy in a beauty contest, out of your head.
The Mountaineers are the bully in the torn up jeans and dirty T-shirt. They are the pick-up truck in a sea of sports cars.
If style points are your thing, West Virginia may not be the team for you.
If winning games is important, then maybe these Mountaineers playing ugly can become a thing of beauty this season.
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