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MORGANTOWN -- Bob Huggins has not lost faith.
The West Virginia University men's basketball team, having dropped nine of its last 10 games, has plummeted to the bottom of the Big 12 standings. The team's postseason prospects, to put it bluntly, look bleak.
For most teams, a Saturday night affair with the No. 6 Kansas Jayhawks is incredibly unappealing. But for Huggins, any game, even one against the conference's best team, could be the one that slingshots the team back into contention.
"Them having a bad day, us having a good day -- it happens," Huggins said yesterday. "We're due. We're 100% due."
Today's game (8 p.m., ESPN) is the 23rd matchup all time between the two schools -- a history almost entirely dominated by the Jayhawks (21-4, 10-2 Big 12). West Virginia (14-11, 3-9 Big 12) has won only twice against KU since 2018, and came out behind when the two teams met earlier this season.
On Jan. 15, a thorough first half allowed the Mountaineers to enter halftime within two points of the then-No. 9 Jayhawks, but a disastrous second half resulted in Kansas emerging with a 26-point victory.
West Virginia struggled to combat the Jayhawks' size in the second half, with players like 6-foot-10 David McCormack taking full advantage. McCormack finished with 19 points and 15 rebounds in only 29 minutes of action.
"I thought we did a pretty good job on him in the first half," Huggins said about the loss. "I'm sure if it gets close, Bill's gonna throw the ball to him. As long as they don't come down every time, try to throw the ball to him, we'll be fine."
Jalen Wilson, who stands 6-foot-8, led the team in scoring that January night, finishing with 23 points and eight rebounds. Kansas' height resulted in the Mountaineers being soundly beaten on the glass on both ends of the floor, tremendously limiting scoring opportunities for themselves while allowing more chances for the Jayhawks.
"What hurt us was the inside guys, it wasn't the perimeter guys," Huggins said about the loss. "It was after they got it going, but the whole thing started with those inside guys. And they've got a bunch of them, they've got like four guys they can throw in there that I think everyone of them would start someplace else. They're good."
In regard to those perimeter guys, Ochai Agbaji (19.9 ppg) and Christian Braun (15.3 ppg) are the Jayhawks' top-two scorers. Agbaji leads the Big 12 in scoring, while Braun places fifth.
DaJuan Harris, who sits third on the team in minutes per game, isn't a major scoring threat, but does lead the team with 4.1 rebounds per game.
"They're good, but you know what? Taz Sherman is pretty good too," Huggins said. "Sean struggled a little bit, but when Sean gets it going he's pretty good too. I think we're on par there."
Obviously, a win would do wonders for the team as, counting today's game, the Mountaineers have six games to push themselves back into the national conversation or, at the very least, increase the possibility of earning a spot in the NCAA tournament.
"We've got six games to go that are winnable," Huggins said. "We're gonna have to play a lot better than what we've played, but they're winnable."
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Gabe Osabuohien, the team's defensive superstar off the bench, did not play Monday against Kansas State after collecting three technical fouls over the prior two games.
Huggins, when asked about Osabuohien's status yesterday, said that it was up to Osabuohien to get his head on straight.
"Gabe's his own worst enemy," Huggins said. "I would think, rather than going and fighting the biggest, strongest kid on the block, you ought to just be able to take care of yourself. He hasn't figured that out yet, I think he will. He's got one more day of practice to figure it out and, if he doesn't, he's gonna sit on the bench."