The West Virginia Mountaineers (17-13, 8-9) host the UCF Knights (20-9, 9-8) at Hope Coliseum on Friday, March 6, at 8 p.m. WVU will honor seven seniors, including the starting five of senior guards Honor Huff, Jasper Floyd, Treysen Eaglestaff, senior forward Brenen Lorient and senior center Harlan Obioha.
The last time out, WVU suffered a costly 65-63 loss to Kansas State at Bramlage Coliseum on Tuesday night. During the second half of the matchup, WVU surrendered a 21-0 run and was unable to make a successful comeback attempt.
Lorient was a key factor in the second half, scoring 12 points on 5-of-6 from the floor. Huff was able to score 11 second-half points, including a triple at the end of the game that made it a two-point defeat. Senior guard Chance Moore led the way with 18 points, shooting 6-for-7 from the floor.
Kansas State’s duo of forward Khamari McGriff and guard Nate Johnson combined for 34 of the 65 points. McGriff was a huge contributor during the 21-0 run, scoring eight of his 18 points during that stretch.
Entering the regular-season finale, WVU will defend home court against the Knights. On the season, the Mountaineers are 14-3 at home with their three losses coming against Texas Tech, Utah and Baylor.
UCF enters the matchup with four scorers led by guard Riley Kugel, who’s averaging 14.6 points per game. In his last five matchups, Kugel is averaging 15 points per game, with his best performance being a 26-point outing against Baylor.
Themus Fulks is the second leading scorer on the team, averaging 14.4 points per game. In his last five games, Fulks is averaging 18.4 points per game and had back-to-back 24-point games against Utah and then-No. 19 BYU.
Huff enters the matchup as the Mountaineers' leading scorer, averaging 15.5 points per game and shooting 35.7% from three-point range. Complimenting Huff is Lorient, who’s averaging 11.6 points and five rebounds this season.
In the past five matchups, Lorient has averaged 12.8 points, with his best performance against then-No.19 BYU. Against the Cougars, he scored 18 points, making seven of his 14 shots.
WVU Men’s Basketball hosts UCF at Hope Coliseum on Friday, March 6, at 8 p.m. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network and can be heard on U92 the Moose.
Sports Director Quinn Robie will have the play-by-play at 8 p.m. alongside color commentator Matt Foley. Pregame will begin at 7:30 p.m., hosted by Brett Berner.