Big East Tournament: West Virginia Mountaineers Quarterfinal Match-up Preview

When the West Virginia Mountaineers take on the Cincinnati Bearcats in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament, it will be a rematch of a closely contested game in late February. The Mountaineers rallied to win 74-68 to give coach Bob Huggins his first victory over his former team.

The Mountaineers struggled in the first half, trailing by as many as 12 points, and ended the half down 39-33.

On the defensive end, the Mountaineers will have to do a better job of defending Cincinnati’s guards, Deonta Vaughn and Lance Stephenson. The pair combined for 29 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists, and just one turnover. West Virginia needs to contain them, while forcing them into more turnovers to win.

West Virginia will likely guard Stephenson with Devin Ebanks, whose height and length should cause Stephenson problems. Ebanks has shown the ability to be an elite defender this year, and is typically matched up on the opposing teams’ best offensive player.

Cincinnati is one of the best rebounding teams in the Big East, and the Mountaineers did a great job of keeping the Bearcats off the glass the first time around. West Virginia out-rebounded Cincinnati by 11, and limited them to just eight offensive rebounds and five second-chance points.

Cincinnati’s leading rebounder, Yancy Gates, was held without a rebound the entire game. West Virginia likely won’t keep him from recording a rebound again, but overall, they need to win the rebounding margin beat the Bearcats.

Offensively, Da’Sean Butler struggled mightily in the first game. He went 3-12, including just 1-5 from three, for a total of eight points.

The better Butler plays, the better the Mountaineers play. He did play arguably his best two-game stretch of the season in the Mountaineers final two regular season games, scoring a total of 43 points.

The other four West Virginia starters in the first game all scored in double figures.

Devin Ebanks needs to continue his strong play for the Mountaineers to win. He had 12 points and shot 50 percent from the field in the first meeting. He’s averaged 15 points over his last nine games, and is a big reason why West Virginia has played well down the stretch.

For West Virginia to win the Big East Tournament, and make a run in the NCAA Tournament, they need someone to step-up and complement Butler, and it is looking like Ebanks will be that guy.

If West Virginia can tighten their defense up on Cincinnati’s guards and Da’Sean Butler plays to his ability, the Mountaineers should come away with the victory.