Can the Mountaineers' Dominant Defense and Fast Breaks Silence the Bearcats Again?
The West Virginia Mountaineers, with a record of 0-0, faced off against the Cincinnati Bearcats at Fifth Third Arena. The game ended with a decisive victory for the Mountaineers, outscoring their opponents 72-43.
The West Virginia Mountaineers showcased an impressive performance on both ends of the court. Their defense was particularly stifling, accumulating a total of 18 steals and blocking three shots. This defensive pressure contributed to a remarkable number of points off turnovers, with the Mountaineers scoring 35 points from Cincinnati's mistakes.
Offensively, West Virginia demonstrated efficiency inside the paint by putting up 42 points in that area. Their shooting was effective as they made 22 out of their 41 two-point attempts, translating to a solid 54 percent shooting rate from that range. From beyond the arc, they managed to add another five three-pointers to their tally.
The team's ability to push the pace resulted in them scoring an impressive 23 fast break points. Additionally, they capitalized on second-chance opportunities by scoring 12 points following offensive rebounds.
West Virginia's free throw shooting was also noteworthy as they made good on 13 out of their total free throw attempts at a rate of approximately 72 percent accuracy. The team's overall field goal percentage stood at around an effective rate of nearly half their shots finding success.
On the other side, despite being overwhelmed by West Virginia's performance, Cincinnati Bearcats showed resilience in certain aspects. They managed to secure more total rebounds than their opponents with a count of 32 and were highly accurate from the charity stripe with an excellent free throw percentage close to perfection at about an astounding rate near or above most professional levels—85 percent accuracy.
However, it wasn't enough as turnovers plagued them throughout; they committed a high number—29 in total—which significantly hampered any momentum they could have built during this conference game attended by only about one thousand spectators.
Looking ahead for fans eager to support their team once more: The next game for West Virginia will be held at WVU Coliseum against Iowa State Cyclones on January 27th at around midday local time (1:00 PM). Fans can catch all live action via ESPN+ internet broadcast network as these teams face off once again.