Shift to full-court pressure spearheaded West Virginia’s rise
At the end of his program’s second season in the Big 12, West Virginia coach Bob Huggins recognized he had to alter his approach.
The Mountaineers finished 13-19 in 2013 and lost in the opening round of the NIT the following year. The common thread between both those seasons was that neither team defended nearly as well as most of Huggins’ previous teams had.
The change Huggins chose to make was a shift in defensive philosophy. He committed to a frantic full-court pressing style defense that exploited his roster’s abundant guard depth and hid some of its weaknesses in other areas.
Tracing the birth of “Press Virginia” is essential to understanding how West Virginia secured one of the most notable victories of Huggins’ tenure on Tuesday night in Morgantown. The 11th-ranked Mountaineers toppled No. 1 Kansas 74-63 because their pressure defense smothered, swarmed and stifled the typically explosive Jayhawks.
A Kansas team that averages a mere 12 turnovers per game had amassed that many by halftime and trailed by eight as a result. The Jayhawks finished with 22 turnovers, by far the biggest reason they never pulled closer than within four points the entire second half.
Most of Kansas’ turnovers were a product of West Virginia speeding the Jayhawks up and forcing them to make decisions at a more frantic pace than which they are accustomed. Point guard Frank Mason and wing Wayne Selden particularly struggled, combining for 13 turnovers, several of which had Kansas coach Bill Self burying his head in his hands or pounding his fist in frustration.
Press Virginia just too strong for KU so far. Don’t believe it? See for yourself. @WVUHoops up 13 w/ 3:41 left https://t.co/vQyxkEmIoP
— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) January 13, 2016
The Mountaineers also had success sagging off Kansas’ second big man in the high post in an effort to deny a pass to Perry Ellis on the low block. Ellis was by far the Jayhawks’ most effective scorer in the game, so that strategy kept him from touching the ball and forced big men like Jamari Traylor, Hunter Mickelson and Landen Lucas to be decision makers.
That Kansas had so much trouble against the press was a surprise considering the Jayhawks appear to be built to handle it. They start two veteran point guards in their backcourt and they entered the game in the nation’s top 30 in turnover percentage.
Kansas can take solace that it’s hardly the first team to look helpless against Huggins’ full-court press. West Virginia won 25 games and reached the Sweet 16 last season in part because its defense forced more turnovers per possession than any other team in the nation. The Mountaineers are again second to none at forcing turnovers this season, a big reason they’re 15-1 overall and unbeaten in Big 12 play.
If the consensus entering the week was that Kansas and Oklahoma were a cut above the Big 12’s other contenders, then West Virginia has a chance to alter that notion when it visits the second-ranked Sooners on Saturday. A two-win week against Kansas and Oklahoma would cement the Mountaineers as a top 10 team and a credible threat to the Jayhawks’ 11-year Big 12 reign.
Oklahoma’s ability to take care of the ball against the press will be critical Saturday, but the Sooners also must do a much better job than Kansas did keeping West Virginia off the offensive glass and off the foul line.
Jaysean Paige scored 14 of his game-high 26 points at the foul line mostly because Kansas’ guards could not stay in front of him off the dribble. Ten of West Virginia’s 47 free throw attempts came in the final two minutes as the Jayhawks were trying to extend the game, but the rest were a product of the aggressiveness of the Mountaineers.
Outside shooting remains West Virginia’s biggest weakness, but sometimes its misses turn into its best offense. The Mountaineers scored 14 second-chance points in the first half and finished with 15 offensive rebounds.
When the blue-and-gold-clad crowd flooded the court at the buzzer Tuesday night and sang ‘Country Roads’ in celebration, hopefully Huggins took time to soak in the moment and think back to the shift in philosophy that made it possible.
West Virginia was a Big 12 also-ran. Press Virginia is a contender that should not be overlooked.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
