Mike Carey excited for opportunity to coach West Virginia with the style he’s wanted for a while

MORGANTOWN — It has been a journey of 1,000 days, or so it likely seems to Mike Carey, one that will come to an end Tuesday for better or worse.

The West Virginia women’s basketball coach admits he has had plans over the last several years to play a certain way, but each time was always forced to go to Plan B.

“I’ve been here so long, and I know most of you have heard me say, ‘We’re going to press this year. We’re going to extend (the defense),’” Carey said, as the 22nd-ranked Mountaineers prepared to open their season against St. Francis (Pa.) at 7 p.m. Tuesday. “Then, all of a sudden, we’re down to eight players, so now we can’t do it.”

Many key injuries have played a part in throwing a monkey wrench into Carey’s plans over the years, as have suspensions or players transferring.

Whatever the reason, the hand Carey was dealt forced him to teach a conservative style to keep the players he had as fresh as possible for an entire season.

“The past few years, we’ve been very talented, but we just didn’t have the numbers,” said WVU guard KK Deans, who averaged 13.7 points per game last season. “This is what he wants to do. He wants us to play with tenacity and really be physical for 40 minutes.”

Rather if it was Carey adding players through the transfer portal, having seniors return for an extra season of eligibility granted to them by the NCAA, or adding freshmen and junior-college prospects through recruiting, WVU enters the season with 15 healthy players, nearly double the amount from last season.

“This is the first year for a while that I feel that we can go ahead and extend and get out and see what we can do,” Carey said. “Whether it’s full-court man-to-man or trapping, no matter what, we’re going to give different looks with some pressure.”

WVU returns four starters from last season, when the Mountaineers advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament.

WVU also returns three players in Jayla Hemingway, Blessing Ejifor and Jasmine Carson who started at least one game, and talented transfers Ari Gray and 6-foot-6 forward Yemiyah Morris instantly add some experience as fifth-year seniors.

“I told her she’s a pro if she can get up and down that court,” Carey said of Morris. “I can’t teach 6-6. She’s got a soft touch and can go with her left and right hand.

“It’s just a matter of conditioning with her. There are days in practice that she looks like a first-round draft pick. She’s got to become consistent.”

And so the Mountaineers begin a different chapter, with this one bringing in early expectation of already being a top 25 team, as well as one deep enough to allow Carey to coach the way he’s wanted to coach for so long.

“It’s my personality, too,” Carey said. “I’ve always wanted to attack offensively and defensively. I’ve never wanted to sit back. My personality is to extend and give pressure. Over the years, we haven’t been able to do that.”

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