The No. 13 Iowa State Cyclones will be at WVU Coliseum to challenge the No. 10 West Virginia Mountaineers in a Big 12 matchup. Action starts at 9:00 pm ET on Monday, Feb. 22 and can be seen on ESP and ES3.
The Mountaineers are hoping to rebound after their 76-62 loss to Oklahoma on Saturday. Tarik Phillip was the team’s high scorer with 17 points. The Cyclones are coming off a 92-83 win against TCU on Saturday. Deonte Burton claimed his first double-double of the season with 23 points and 14 rebounds.
Georges Niang has been on a tear over the last five games for the Cyclones, averaging 22.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.6 steals, 0.6 blocks, and 1.4 three-pointers.
A focal point for West Virginia is getting to the free throw line. It ranks eighth in the nation in FTA rate (46.4), but Iowa State is among the best in the nation at keeping opponents away from the charity stripe (ranking second by yielding a FTA rate of 23.2). Also, the Cyclones’s 24th-ranked offense (offensive efficiency of 115.2) will face off against the 11th-ranked defense of the Mountaineers (defensive efficiency of 93.6).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Mountaineers won the first game 81-76. Devin Williams finished with 17 points and 18 rebounds.
The Mountaineers look to build on their records of 20-7 Straight Up (SU) and 15-10 Against The Spread (ATS). The Mountaineers have one of the most prolific offenses in the entire nation, averaging 79.3 points per game. West Virginia has an edge in the rebounding department for this game, where it racks up an average of 39.9 rebounds per game. The West Virginia defense has done poorly against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, allowing an average of 76.4 points per game, well above their season average of 66.0.
Over on the other bench, the Cyclones have 19-8 SU and 12-11-1 ATS records. During the last 10 games, they averaged 70.9 PPG, below their 83.0 PPG season average. The Cyclones convert their shots at a high percentage, ranking second in the country at .504. The Cyclones are the better of the two teams when it comes to assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking 17th in Division I at 1.49. The Cyclones are in for a physical game against West Virginia. The Mountaineers are not afraid to send opponents to the free throw line, averaging 23.8 fouls per game.
Following the Mountaineers’ latest win over Iowa State, West Virginia moved closer to evening up its record against Iowa State. It now stands at 2-5 SU over their most recent meetings. The Cyclones also lead the matchup ATS with a record of 4-3. When it comes to field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers, Iowa State held the edge in all three of these categories once in the last five meetings. West Virginia never did so in those games.
Predictions: SU Winner – WVU, ATS Winner – WVU
Notes
West Virginia averages 79.3 points per game (ranked 37th). Iowa State, on the other hand, allows 75.1 points per game (ranked 205th).
West Virginia scores 82.3 points per home game (ranked 42nd). Iowa State ranks a poor 197th in points allowed on the road, allowing 77.8 points.
Ranked 64th, the West Virginia Mountaineers have an offensive rating of 111.5. The Iowa State Cyclones rank 161st with a defensive rating of just 103.1.
Iowa State beats West Virginia in both possessions per game and points per possession. The Cyclones average 72.0 possessions and 1.152 points per possession, while the Mountaineers average 71.1 possessions with 1.115 points per possession.
Iowa State has an average effective field goal percentage of 57.0% (ranked sixth in the nation). West Virginia is a subpar 2-4 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
The West Virginia Mountaineers average 18.0 three point attempts per game, and the Iowa State Cyclones attempt 21.0 per game. When going for at least 20 three pointers in a game this season, both teams have winning records; West Virginia is 7-4 and Iowa State is 14-4.
The 17th-ranked team in the category, Iowa State has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.49 this season. West Virginia ranks lower at 172nd with an A/TO of 1.05.
West Virginia, the 37th-ranked team in rebounding, register an average of 39.9 rebounds per game. Iowa State does worse, ranked 173rd with 36.3.
Making 10.0 steals per game, West Virginia is ranked second in the country. Iowa State has a winning 2-1 record when it gives up at least 10 steals.
