The West Virginia Mountaineers are 2-0 on the season, but it didn't come easily. WVU basketball had to fight tooth-and-nail to pull out a win on their homecourt against the Campbell Fighting Camels on Thursday night, but walked away with a 73-65 win. Here are some takeaways frm a game which was closer than most Mountaineer fans were likely comfortable with.
The Honor Huff 3-Point Hype Is Probably Legit
I mean, maybe this one should have never been in question. Huff was the top three-point shooter in the nation last season, and did reportedly convert 10 buckets from behind-the-arc in a 'secret' scrimmage against Maryland in the preseason. But he went a combined 5-18 from deep range in the exhibition against Wheeling and season-opener against the Mount St. Mary's.
But in a close game against Campbell, Huff went 4-of-9 alone from three-point range and hit two massive triples late in the second half to keep stretching the Mountaineers' lead when the Camels continuously kept the game close. He ended up finishing the game with 23 points on 5-of-10 from the field and 9-of-10 from the charity stripe.
Block City For Brenen Lorient
Lorient had a double-double in the season-opener against Mount St. Mary's, and nearly had another on Thursday with 12 points and nine rebounds. He's a versatile, do-it-all type of player who can contribute in many ways, and he also added four assists in the victory. But his most impressive stat? He recorded a whopping five blocks against the Camels. Obviously, those are not numbers you'll see replicated every game. But if Lorient can prove to be that type of shot-blocking threat, it will add a weapon the Mountaineers' defense that they haven't had in a few years – a proficient shot-blocker with significant height and length in the post.
Close Calls Could Get Concerning Soon
Sure, you could excuse Mount St. Mary's being a close game with a 16-point margin of victory on the visitors being a team coming off an NCAA Tournament bid. But the Camels played WVU even closer and went down to the wire, and they went 15-17 last season and entered with a first-year head coach. It's obviously not panic time yet. The Mountaineers don't even have a loss yet. But it's clear there's something that still needs to be worked out before things truly click for this unit in the regular season, and the relatively easy non-conference schedule in November should be seen as a blessing right now.