Mar 7, 2012; New York, NY, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers forward Kevin Jones (5) reacts after scoring during the second half of the second round against the Connecticut Huskies at the Big East Tournament held at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports

Jones, cut in training camp by the Cavaliers, was recently resigned to provide some depth on the depleted Cavaliers squad after a short stint in Canton. Jones will be on the active roster tomorrow night as the Cavaliers host the Chicago Bulls.

While Jones is not expected to see much, if any, playing time this week with the Cavaliers, expect coach Byron Scott to give Jones the opportunity to show what he can do in the big league in the near future. It is not exactly like the Cavaliers are in contention for a playoff spot with their meager 4-14 record and it would be in the Cavaliers best interest to give Jones a proper evaluation against NBA-level talent.

Coach Scott obviously does not have much faith in his reserve forwards. Tristan Thompson has played the bulk of the minutes at power forward for the Cavs with Tyler Zeller sometimes pairing with Varajeo in the front court or, more frequently, the Cavs will resort to a smaller line-up to get more playing time for their guards. Jones could prove quite valuable to a Cleveland team in need of scoring power in the paint and along the baseline.

Look for Kevin Jones to shine in the shadows of Cleveland this season.

Mar 15, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers forward Kevin Jones (5) handles the ball against Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Guy Landry Edi (10) during the first half in the second round of the 2012 NCAA men

Former West Virginia Mountaineer forward Kevin Jones has signed a contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers recently.

Jones was in training camp this past summer with the Cavaliers before being assigned to Canton Charge of the NBA D-League. In the past three games in Canton, Jones has been dominating with 27.0 points per game average, leading many Cleveland fans wondering when Jones will move up to the big league.

The Cavaliers released Luke Harrangody yesterday, freeing up a roster spot that Jones is expected to occupy in the near future. The Cleveland Plain Dealer is reporting that Jones is likely to remain in Canton this weekend but speculates that he will be called up to the Cavaliers soon.

This is Jones shot at the pros, and given the way he has dominated in the NBA D-League, there is promise that Jones can become a solid role player on a struggling Cavaliers squad.

Kevin Jones (Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-US PRESSWIRE)

The West Virginia Mountaineers are one and done in the tournament after losing to Gonzaga, 77-54. The Mountaineers finish the season 19-14.

The Mountaineers fell behind with 18:38 remaining in the first half and it was all downhill from there. Gonzaga led by 18 at the half and continued to dominate for the remainder of the game. The Zags shot 56% from the floor, 52.9% from 3-point range, and 75% from the free throw line compared to 32.7%, 17.6%, and 67.9%, respectively, from the Mountaineers.

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The West Virginia Mountaineers drew a 10th seed NCAA bid and are set to face the 7th seed Gonzaga Bulldogs from the West Coast Conference. The Mountaineers were fortunate to make the tournament having the lowest RPI and wins for any other at-large team and even more fortunate to open the tournament a short distance away in Pittsburgh.

Who is Gonzaga you ask? Gonzaga is a Catholic University located in Spokane, Washington. The Zags are making their 15th appearance in the tournament and are 16-14 in all previous match-ups. Head coach, Mark Few, has been with the team for 13 years and has led them to the tournament since starting his career there.

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The game was back and forth the entire first half of play. The Mountaineers would pull away by 4, 30-26, at the half. With a little over 3 minutes left in the game, the Mountaineers led by 6. UConn forced turnovers, shot with accuracy, and tied the game. Overtime was a mess for the Mountaineers. The team only scored 2 points, off of Truck Bryant free throws, in the period.

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Kevin Jones (Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-US PRESSWIRE)

The stage is set for West Virginia’s first game in its final Big East tournament. The Mountaineers will face UCONN on Wednesday.

Before we get to that, let’s talk the travesty that is the Kevin Jones snub for Big East Player of the Year.  After we learned that Kevin Jones wasn’t a unanimous pick for the All Big East team, I had a bad feeling that Big East Player of the Year was probably not going to happen. Turns out, I was right. Jae Crowder from Marquette accepted the award earlier this afternoon.  How? Why? I really can’t understand the reasoning behind this decision. I have heard many reasons, but none hold water in my opinion. Sure the team, as a whole, didn’t have a stand out season, but the fact is, without Kevin Jones, it would have been much worse.  Jones led the conference in PPG and RPG. How can that be ignored?  I feel bad for KJ. I am sure that he is disappointed. I am angered and frustrated as a fan, so I can’t imagine how he feels.

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The West Virginia Mountaineers beat the South Florida Bulls on the road, 50-44. They finish the regular season 19-12 overall and 9-9 in the Big East.

The game was ugly, so much so, that ugly may be an understatement. The Mountaineers only shot 15-58 from the floor and 2-12 from 3-point range. Fortunately, shooting from the line went in West Virginia’s favor. They shot 85.7%.

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Before we get to Amy’s preview (BTW, Amy has done a phenomenal job with her coverage this season), we decided to have one last hurrah of Q&A with our friend Matt over at The Bull Rush. Despite us no longer being able to do blog Q&As when WVU leaves for the Big12, make no mistake about it, Matt and I will remain friends. Anyway, check his site out, then come back to this Q&A:

1) How did USF manage to pull off this amazing turnaround in one season? Last year, as I recall, USF were the cellar-dwellers in this conference.
The turn around is a bit shocking to be honest.  The team only added 3 new players to the roster, Collins, Nash, and Rudd (sat out last year) and lost two others.  They had a rough season and going into 2012, the hopes were never this high, but it’s great to see.  There is energy back in the team, the program, and the fan base, it’s a lot of fun to see right now.

2) What has life been like playing at the St. Pete Times forum, as opposed to the Sun Dome this season?
The Forum has been great so far, although there isn’t a real strong student section because of the distance.  We are 14-1 there and for the fans, it’s in the middle of downtown with restaurants and night life, so it’s a great place not only to see a game (the Lightning did huge renovations on the place as well) but the area is fantastic as well.  Although the Sun Dome, which is getting closer to completion, is going to be incredible. 

3) Who can we expect to see in the Starting 5 on Saturday?
(Coach) Heath could make a change, but I expect to see Anthony Collins and Hugh Robertson at the guard positions and Augustus Gilchrist, Ron Anderson Jr., and Victor Rudd on the front line for this one.

4) Strengths and weaknesses of this year’s hoops squad?
The strength is defense, no question about it.  They are very disciplined with their assignments, help each other, and they are not afraid to take a charge.  Their weakness is scoring.  The offense often drains the shot clock, works for a good shot, and then drives to the basket.  They aren’t a team designed to run up and down the court, so they control tempo and make the shots when they need them. 

5) How far will USF go in the Big East Tournament?
This is going to be an interesting year for the Bulls.  They have a first round bye, something they never though possible.  They could face Rutgers or St. John’s in the second round of the tournament, two teams they beat earlier, so they should get to the third round and could face Notre Dame at that point.  With the way they play defense, it’s hard to say how far they can go,  we just want them to keep at it. 

6) Do the Bulls have enough wins to make the Big Dance, or will it be a #1 spot in the NIT?
This is the hottest topic of debate right now.  The goal is NCAA of course, USF hasn’t been there since 1992 and there is a lot that can happen.  What the team has to do right now is remained focused and just play the games in front of them, they can’t look at the “experts” to see if their in or not.  On paper, with the high RPI, wins over Louisville, Cincy, and others, we would think they would be in with another win or two, starting with WVU of course. 

Now, it’s time to read Amy’s preview, and it is a good one!

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The West Virginia Mountaineers face the DePaul Blue Demons tonight in the final home game of the season. The Mountaineers are 17-12 overall and 7-9 in Big East play.

The Mountaineers suffered a tough loss on Friday after Marquette was able to overcome a 15 point deficit to win the game. These last two games of the regular season will likely determine if West Virginia gets into the NCAA tournament or possibly heads to the NIT.

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