For a team built only a season ago around a motion offense and a gimmick 1-3-1 zone defense, it seemed almost unfathomable for West Virginia to win an NCAA tournament game with rebounding and suffocating man-to-man defense.
But that’s the kind of impact first-year coach Bob Huggins has made on his Mountaineers.
West Virginia put the clamps on Duke and its three-point shooters Saturday, limiting the Blue Devils to a 5-for-22 performance from behind the arc, and outrebounded them 47-27 in coasting to a 73-67 upset victory in the second round of the West regional.
“From Day 1, coach Huggins came in and emphasized defense,” West Virginia point guard Darris Nichols said. “We’ve consistently gotten better, and now it’s starting to show.”
If not for a turnaround on the offensive end, seventh-seeded West Virginia’s defensive work might have gone unnoticed. The Mountaineers. who normally thrive beyond the arc themselves, missed all six of their three-pointers in the first half and trailed by five at the break.
But after a lecture from Huggins, West Virginia went on an 18-3 run early in the second half to take control of the game for good.
Joe Alexander led the Mountaineers with 22 points and 11 rebounds, and he tormented Duke defenders who were either too small to guard him in the post or too slow to cover him off the dribble.
