Basketball Preview 2016

Many Questions for WVU Men

By JIM BUTTA MORGANTOWN — In his own unique manner long-time West Virginia University head men’s basketball coach Bob Huggins thanked his fellow Big 12 coaches for picking his Mountaineers to finish second to defending league champion Kansas at the recently held Big 12 Media Conference. “Well, the answer to the first part of your question, all those guys lied,” Huggins quipped. “They lied. There isn’t one of those guys that don’t think they’re going to beat us. So why would they vote for a second if they think they’re going to beat us? I don’t believe ...

Carey, WVU Women Look to Prove Big 12 Wrong

By JIM BUTTA MORGANTOWN — Ever since arriving in Morgantown prior to the start of the 2001-02 campaign, Clarksburg native Mike Carey has known nothing but success at West Virginia. And, despite the loss of Bria Holmes, the team’s top point producer a year ago, to the WNBA, Carey and the Mountaineers find themselves again ranked among the top programs in the country — No. 22 in the preseason AP Poll – and the Big 12 Conference – No. 4 preseason finish. “We’re excited to get going,” said Carey, who is in his 16th season at the helm of the program. “We have ...

Allison, Orth Will Be Leaned On Heavily

By JOSH STROPE WHEELING — The Linsly girls won’t have a lot in terms of numbers this year, with nine kids on the roster. That puts a lot of extra emphasis on the starting five to stay healthy and out of foul trouble. Throw in a new coach with a new system and things could easily go south in a hurry. Of course, most teams don’t have Vivian Allison and Jazzie Orth, either. Allison and Orth combine to form one of the top duos on any team in the Ohio Valley and will be the focal point of much of what new Cadets coach Rebecca Upton does this season. “They are ...

Big Reds Ready to Go

By RICK THORP BELLAIRE — John Farrier can’t wait to get the season started. And who can blame him? With six letterwinners back, including his top five scorers and five players who started at some point last winter, Farrier is chomping at the bit to get at it. The Big Reds open the campaign tonight at Barnesville. And when they do they’ll begin what they hope will be a journey to building on an 8-14 record from a year ago that was filled with many triumphs, but many near-misses, too. ‘‘We were on the fringe of some things,’’ Farrier said, ‘‘but ...

4 Starters Back For Bellaire

By SETH STASKEY BELLAIRE — Saying Bellaire basketball coach J.R. Battista is excited about this season would be a total understatement. And why wouldn’t he be? After all, the Big Reds have increased their win total each of the last three seasons and return four starters from a squad that finished 14-9 and qualified — for the first time — into the semifinals of the OVAC Tournament. “Last year was another good building block,” Battista said. “Getting into the OVAC tournament was big for us and basically every game, last year, we had a chance to win. ...

Jebbia’s Patriots Will Be Lacking in Experience

By JOSH STROPE WHEELING — It’s not too often a school the size of Wheeling Park has inexperience on its basketball team, but that is the situation Coach Michael Jebbia and his coaching staff finds themselves in as training camp hits. Wheeling Park returns two starters from last season’s 14-9 squad and Jebbia will rely heavily on them as the rest of the roster will be a work in progress throughout the season. “The biggest thing is we need to try and stay positive, even when negative plays happen,” Jebbia, entering his 11th season as head coach, said. “There are ...