On Saturday, West Virginia has a shot at doing something it has not done since Bob Huggins became the Mountaineers coach three years ago. Louisville has been a thorn in the side of WVU recently, always finding ways to beat the Mountaineers.
“That’d be awesome if we had a chance to beat them here, at home,” said senior forward Da’Sean Butler, who has not yet been on the winning end against the Cardinals.
The rivalry has been in the making for years, but heated up during the John Beilein era of WVU basketball. The two teams clashed during an epic 93-85 overtime win by Louisville, in the Elite Eight round of the 2005 NCAA tournament. The following year Louisville joined the Big East and the Mountaineers got their revenge, beating the Cardinals by four points at home, behind stars Mike Gansey and Kevin Pittsnogle.
But since then, Louisville has owned the series, winning four meetings in row. One such agonizing defeat for WVU came in an overtime loss in the second round of the 2007 Big East tournament, which cost WVU an NCAA tournament bid. Last year, Louisville visited the WVU Coliseum during the schools’ first-ever appearance on ESPN Game Day and won by three points, spoiling the nationally televised showcase for the home team.
“[Louisville] kind of snuck one away last year,” said Butler, who scored just 10 points on four of 17 shooting and missed a three-point shot at the final buzzer, which would have tied the game.
The Mountaineers would like nothing more than to rid the bitter taste of past defeat by earning an important conference victory over one of their loathed rivals.
This year, Louisville (13-7, 4-3 BIG EAST) limps into the match-up losers of three of their last four games. Ninth-ranked WVU (16-3, 5-2 BIG EAST) on the other hand, has won three of its previous four games and is fourth in the current conference standings.
Records, rankings, standings and statistics don’t mean much in rivalry games and the Mountaineers are expecting to be in for a battle.
“We’re no better than they are,” Butler said. “Louisville is still Louisville. You can’t overlook the fact that they have a great coach and a good team all the time.”
In previous games against Louisville, the Cardinals have put a stranglehold on the Mountaineers with a furious full court press, which is a staple of renowned coach Rick Pitino. Dependable guard play, patience, spacing and finding open teammates are necessary in breaking the press.
“The last two times we played them, we turned it over in the press and they come out and Jerry Smith hits two or three 3s or [Terrence] Jennings gets a dunk,” said point guard Joe Mazzulla. “Luckily we’re playing them at home, so they don’t have the crowd to feed off of. I think the biggest key is just being patient -- not letting them get on those runs.”
Mazzulla, along with point guard Truck Bryant, will be especially valuable in breaking the pressure and getting the ball up the floor to run the offense. Executing sound offense, as opposed to turning it over and watching Louisville cash in quick transition points, will be vital in determining the winner of the game.
“If we can control their runs and keep them from scoring easy baskets, they won’t be as aggressive and active in the press,” Mazzulla said. “If it takes eight or nine seconds to get it over, that’s better than throwing it away for a dunk or a three.”
Huggins, who was known for installing similarly fierce press defenses during his tenure at Cincinnati, knows exactly what the press intends to do. “Pressure is what you make of it. You just can’t panic,” he said. “Pressure thrives on people panicking and people playing faster than they’re capable of playing.”
When the Mountaineers are able to break the pressure and get into their half court motion offense, Louisville will drop back and counter with a 2-3 zone, which is an aspect of Pitino’s coaching this year that impresses Huggins.
“I think what they do a great job of is changing defenses and changing their pressure,” Huggins said. “He [Pitino] doesn’t have probably the size and the strength he had a year ago and maybe the athleticism, so he’s changed how they do things.”
Mazzulla realizes what getting that first win over Louisville would mean to Huggins and the rest of the team. “He really wants us to come out and play as hard as we can and smart as we can and win.”