WVU will rely on newly charged offense to compete with Ohio State

MORGANTOWN — It would seem West Virginia is headed for disaster Saturday, when the Mountaineers take on Ohio State in the Legends of Basketball Showcase in Cleveland.

That’s what the stats and the metrics say, anyway.

Josh Eilert may have a different story in mind, one that has a new-look Mountaineers’ roster going toe-to-toe with the Buckeyes.

“Just like any team, they have their weaknesses,” Eilert said of Ohio State. “We have to figure out strategically how we can take advantage of those weaknesses.”

WVU STATS

On paper, Ohio State (10-2) has the advantage. The Buckeyes are on the cusp of a national top-25 ranking and they are among the elite in the NCAA NET rankings at No. 28.

West Virginia?

The Mountaineers (5-7) have lost four of their last six games heading into the final nonconference games for both schools.

WVU’s NET ranking of No. 178 is six spots behind Norfolk State and just five ahead of some school named Kennesaw State.

So, yeah, WVU faces quite a challenge against the Buckeyes.

“They’re a physical team,” Eilert continued. “They do a lot of things very very well. They shoot the ball very well.”

And the Buckeyes have a 1-2 punch in point guard Bruce Thornton and forward Jamison Battle.

Thornton is the former 4-star recruit out of Georgia, who got taken out of SEC country when he signed with Ohio State.

Battle is a well-traveled young man, beginning his career at George Washington, before transferring to Minnesota and now playing his final season of eligibility with the Buckeyes.

“Both those guys present challenges,” Eilert said. “Battle is a good as a shooter at that size (6-foot-7) as you’re going to see across the country.

“Thornton is going to be a constant challenge to figure out how we can keep the ball out of his hands. He’s a dynamic three-way scorer and he does a lot for their team.”

Combined, the Ohio State duo score about 31 points a game. They both shoot 45% from the floor, can make 3-pointers and both are also excellent free-throw shooters.

So, what exactly do Eilert and the Mountaineers have up their sleeves?

The short answer may to simply try and outscore the Buckeyes, to run and gun and let WVU’s athletic lineup do its thing.

“I think we have a heck of a roster right now that can compete with anybody,” Eilert said.

It’s a roster that hasn’t played many games together, but has been impressive in a short matter of time.

That begins with guard RaeQuan Battle, who is averaging 29 points, but has played only two games. Kerr Kriisa is averaging 7.7 assists per game, but this will be his fourth game of the season.

Noah Farrakhan has scored in double digits in every game he’s played, but that’s been only three games.

Throw in Quinn Slazinski — he’s averaging 15.9 points a game — and WVU is not without its own firepower.

“We certainly have to see some (3-pointers) fall, especially to beat good teams,” Eilert said. “We can’t go out there and hit three or four. We need to be in the eight or nine range.

“It’s certainly a different dynamic than we had before when you put Noah Farrakhan, Kerr Kriisa and RaeQuan out there.”