Players to Watch
1. #21 RaeQuan Battle, 6’5″, 195 lbs., 5th-Year Sr., G, Tulalip, Wash., Montana State Transfer
16.6 ppg, 4.1 rebs, 40.4 FG%, 34% 3-PT FG, 83.5 FT%, 12 ast.-40 TO, 11 blk, 18 stl, 28.6 mpg
January 31st vs. Cincinnati: 10 pts, 2 rebs, 2-6 FG (1-2 3-PT FG), 5-6 FT, TO, blk, 23 mins
Battle is actually having a really good season, particularly in the second half of Big 12 play. Since the game against Cincinnati, Battle has four 20-point games and four games with five or more rebounds. But here’s where the Bearcats can be aggressive: Battle has six games with multiple turnovers in West Virginia’s last nine games.
2. #7 Jesse Edwards, 6’11”, 240 lbs., 5th-Year Sr., C, Amsterdam, Netherlands, Syracuse Transfer
15.3 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 60.4 FG%, 0-4 3-PT FG, 53.1 FT%, 27 ast.-41 TO, 36 blk, 12 stl, 28.9 mpg
January 31st vs. Cincinnati: 25 pts, 10 rebs, 11-17 FG, 3-9 FT, ast., TO, 4 blk, 29 mins
Edwards was a high-impact player in the first game between the Bearcats and Mountaineers. He’s had an excellent nine games since then, including a 36-point performance Wednesday night against TCU. He has two double-digit rebound games over the previous nine games, so Cincinnati’s big men will have to do an admirable job containing him in the paint Saturday afternoon.
3. #11 Quinn Slazinski, 6’9″, 230 lbs., 5th-Year Sr., F, Houston, Texas, Iona Transfer
12.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 39.7 FG%, 33.1 3-PT FG%, 79.1 FT%, 63 ast.-56 TO, 6 blk, 12 stl, 29.3 mpg
January 31st vs. Cincinnati: 15 pts, 5 rebs, 5-9 FG (1-2 3-PT FG), 4-6 FT, 3 ast., 5 TO, 35 mins
Slazinski is the third-leading scorer of four double-digit scorers on the Mountaineers. He has four double-digit scoring games in the nine games since the win over Cincinnati on the final day of January.
4. #3 Kerr Kriisa, 6’3″, 185 lbs., Sr., G, Tartu, Estonia, Arizona Transfer
11.2 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 43.6 FG%, 43.2 3-PT FG%, 75.7 FT%, 102 ast.-62 TO, blk, 17 stl, 33.3 mpg
January 31st vs. Cincinnati: 10 pts, 3 rebs, 2-6 FG (2-6 3-PT FG), 4-6 FT, 7 ast., 2 TO, 3 stl, 37 mins
Kriisa is probably the player Bearcats fans know the most about on the Mountaineers from his time with Arizona. He definitely had a huge impact in multiple ways in the first game against the Bearcats. Since then he’s had eight games with at least four assists and five double-digit scoring along with five games with multiple three-point makes.
5. #1 Noah Farrakhan, 6’1″, 170 lbs., Sr., G, Newark, N.J., Eastern Michigan Transfer
7.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 40.5 FG%, 33.3 3-PT FG%, 75% FT, 37 ast.-31 TO, blk, 11 stl, 20.3 mpg
January 31st vs. Cincinnati: 5 pts, 2 rebs, 2-4 FG (1-1 3-PT FG), 11 mins
Farrakhan is a player to not be overlooked. Even though he only has one notable performance in the Mountaineers previous nine games- an 11-point, eight-rebound performance at Texas- he has the ability to be an accurate shooter including from three-point range.
6. #2 Kobe Johnson, 6’3″, 205 lbs., Jr., G, Canton, Ohio
6 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 41.8 FG%, 28.3 3-PT FG%, 77.8 FT%, 65 ast.-47 TO, 10 blk, 16 stl, 26.3 mpg
January 31st vs. Cincinnati: 2 pts, 5 rebs, 1-5 FG, 3 ast., 1 stl, 33 mins
Johnson has been hovering around the six-points per game mark for the last nine games, but he will play a majority of the game Saturday. He has 30 or more minutes played in three of West Virginia’s last five games, and he also has two games with four assists in that stretch.
