Darian DeVries working up options to free up WVU point guard Javon Small

MORGANTOWN — Javon Small will walk off the team bus Saturday and head into Bramlage Coliseum.

At that point, he is a young man who can move around freely.

It will only be temporary.

As the 23rd-ranked WVU men’s basketball team prepares to face struggling Kansas State at 6 p.m. Saturday, the Mountaineers already know a heavy dose of double teams and traps are headed Small’s way.

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That’s the consistent strategy the Mountaineers (13-5, 4-3 Big 12) have seen thrown at them since the start of Big 12 play.

Get the ball out of Small’s hands has been priority No. 1.

Priority No. 2: Don’t forget priority No. 1.

“I think we wanted to try to take away Small as much as we can and make things difficult,” was the way Arizona State head coach Bobby Hurley explained it after Tuesday’s 65-57 win against the Mountaineers. “Just trying to make things as difficult as possible. We were trying to show bodies in driving lanes, guys stabbing at the ball just so he couldn’t get any drives to the basket.” 

As the Big 12’s top scorer averaging 19.5 points per game, Small has commanded that type of respect.

The trick is for WVU head coach Darian DeVries to draw up a counter plan of attack.

One of those plans is for Small to get the ball out of his hands quickly to a teammate rolling toward the rim. That’s what happened against Kansas, as Eduardo Andre kept hauling in bounce passes from Small for open buckets in the paint.

Another option is to play freshman K.J. Tenner at the point, which moves Small off the ball. That plan had to go on pause two weeks ago after Tenner was injured, but he has since returned.

“Some of K.J.’s minutes are to rest Javon,” DeVries said. “The other half will be for exactly that, to get Javon off the ball so we can get him on the move a little bit more in space where defenses can’t load up against him.”

Are there other options? Sure. DeVries could just keep sending Small to the concession stand for snacks and drinks and pray two K-State defenders will follow him.

“There are ways to get creative in trying to utilize him in all aspects,” DeVries said. “Maybe it’s not just bringing him off a screen, maybe he’s the screener. They’re so worried about him as an offensive player, that now if he’s the screener, you flip the script a little bit.

“Maybe they’re not as willing to help on him then and maybe we can get an easy one because of him being on the floor and utilizing him in that way.”

Small had success against the Wildcats (7-11, 1-6) last season while playing for Oklahoma State.

In two games against K-State, Small averaged 14.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and six assists per game.

K-State enters the game having lost six straight, but only two — Houston and Oklahoma State — were by more than 10 points.

“When you look at them, outside of the Houston game, their games have come right down to the wire,” DeVries said. “They led at Kansas. They had Baylor down double digits on the road. They’re right there. They just haven’t had the wins to show for it.”

Unique scouting report

Kansas State’s Coleman Hawkins was the Big 12 preseason newcomer of the year, and the 6-foot-10 forward has followed that up so far with two double-doubles and one 13-rebound performance.

On the season, Hawkins is averaging 10.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game.

Hawkins transferred from Illinois, where he played with WVU’s Sencire Harris and Amani Hansberry last season.

WVU associate head coach Chester Frazier was also an assistant at Illinois last season.

DeVries admits they have a more detailed scouting report on Hawkins than other teams may have.

“Those guys know him well and they know each other well, so they’re getting the same information,” DeVries said. “We certainly have a good feel for what he likes and what type of player he is.”