MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — The ills and chills that hit Derek Culver during the Big 12 tournament have run their course.
“He’s doing good,” WVU head coach Bob Huggins said. “He’s running well. We’ve just got to get him to be more assertive around the rim again.”
Against Oklahoma State in the Big 12 tournament, Culver, who was named honorable mention on the Associated Press’ All-American team Tuesday, gutted out 30 minutes when “he could barely walk,” according to Huggins.
A bad cold had Culver lying on the ground with a towel over his head when he was on the bench and he received an IV at halftime in order to keep playing.
With Culver closer to full health, it sets up a good battle of the bigs Friday night when third-seeded West Virginia plays Morehead State in the first round of the NCAA tournament in Indianapolis.
Culver will be squaring off against Morehead State’s 6-foot-10 freshman Johni (pronounced Joe-nye) Broome.
The two towering forward present similar games.
Both are tenacious offensive rebounders.
Thirty-four percent of Broome’s rebounds are on the offensive glass, while Culver comes in at 30%.
Culver was first team all-Big 12. Broome was the Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year after averaging 13.9 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.
Neither player attempted a 3-pointer during the season.
“That’s going to be the marquee matchup of the night without a doubt,” Morehead State head coach Preston Spradlin said. “We probably play through Johni a little bit more than West Virginia plays through Culver, but he’s a fantastic talent. He’s a big strong lefty that can score it over either shoulder in the post. He can pass and do a lot of things. He’s obviously a very gifted athlete. It’s going to be a big-time matchup.”
Playing out of the OVC, the number of times the Eagles play Power Five Conference teams are limited.
Morehead State went 0-3 this season against Kentucky, Ohio State and Clemson.
In those three games, Broome struggled.
He combined to shot 50% (8 of 16) from the floor against those teams, but was limited to just 6.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.
A good showing against the Mountaineers for Broome could help eliminate those frustrations.
“I know Johni is excited about it already,” Spradlin said. “It’s going to be a great matchup and we’ll make sure he’s ready for it.”
If Broome struggles again, Spradlin said it would be up to the Eagles’ guards to step up.
“It’s going to be on our guards,” he said. “Even just getting the ball to Johni against their pressure will be on our guards.
“A guy that’s really important in what we do is DeVon Cooper. He can beat you in a lot of different ways, whether if it’s with his outside shooting or his play-making ability. It’s going to put a lot of pressure on our two point guards. KJ Hunt, this will be a really good game for him, because West Virginia is really good at taking you out of your offense. KJ is a guy who can break that down.”
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