It’s finally here. After three long decades of waiting for another opportunity to host an NCAA Tournament, the West Virginia Mountaineers will do battle with the Miami (Ohio) RedHawks inside Hope Coliseum on Saturday night.

Here is how we see this one playing out.

Schuyler Callihan: West Virginia 70, Miami (OH) 41

Amber Tretter (6’1″) is the player to watch for the RedHawks. She was named the MAC Player of the Year after averaging 14.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game while shooting 50% from the field and north of 36% from three-point territory. If West Virginia can neutralize her, which I believe they can, they’ll be able to win this game going away.

Miami has several capable scorers, but this will undoubtedly be the best defensive team they’ve faced all season, and they’re going to need Tretter to bring her A game for them to even have a chance.

If you’re someone who likes an up-and-down offensive affair, this is probably not the game for you. While Miami is a strong offensive team, they pride themselves on their defense, just like West Virginia. This may feel like a bit of a rock fight at first, but once West Virginia settles in and knocks down some shots, they should be able to lean on their defense and cruise to a first-round victory, likely setting up a second-round date with Kentucky.

Joey Bray: West Virginia 70, Miami (OH) 50

I think the Mountaineers take care of business in front of what could be a record crowd at Hope Coliseum. Miami of Ohio is making just its second NCAA Tournament appearance in program history after winning the MAC, but finds itself in a tough draw against WVU.

WVU outmatches the RedHawks defensively, which is impressive given the fact that the RedHawks are more of a defensive team. The RedHawks have four starters who average ten or more points per game, showing they have players who are capable of scoring when they need to. However, they have not played a defense quite like West Virginia yet this season. WVU has just as many players who average over ten or more and have proven they can score in bunches against tough Big 12 competition.

The Mountaineers should be able to cruise to what will likely be a round of 32 matchup against the Kentucky Wildcats for a chance to reach the program’s first Sweet 16 under Coach Kellogg.

CHARLESTON, W. Va. (WCHS) — After area team Tug Valley earned a Class A title game berth on Thursday, area teams Chapmanville Regional and George Washington followed up the Panthers by doing the same on Friday at the West Virginia High School Boys Basketball State Tournament.

Tug meets Greater Beckley at 10 a.m. Saturday..

Chapmanville defeated Winfield in an all-area Class AAA semifinal to move into the Saturday championship at 5pm. against North Marion, who took down defending champ Bridgeport.

GW defeated Washington Friday evening to gain a spot in the championship once again. Last year, the Patriots lost to Spring Mills for the crown. And that just happens to be the opponent the Patriots meet Saturday evening at 7:30.

The AA championship will pit Wheeling Central against Wyoming East t 12:30.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia coach Mark Kellogg has made a huge impression in his first three seasons at a major college. All that’s missing is a deep run in the women’s NCAA Tournament.

No. 4 seed West Virginia (27-6) is a tournament host for the first time since 1992. A win over No. 13 seed Miami (Ohio ) (28-6) in the first round on Saturday night would tie the Mountaineers’ best three-year stretch in program history with 78 wins.

Since Kellogg arrived from Stephen F. Austin in 2023, West Virginia has lost only five times at home.

“I think our kids, to their credit, have earned the right to play here,” Kellogg said. “Super excited about that.”

The hard part will be moving on. In 16 previous NCAA appearances, the Mountaineers have never won more than once, bowing out in the second round under Kellogg the past two seasons.

West Virginia comes in on a six-game winning streak, taking down TCU to win the Big 12 Tournament for the first time since 2017.

“Our best basketball is yet to come,” West Virginia guard Sydney Shaw said.

The opener of the Morgantown region Saturday pits No. 5 seed Kentucky (23-10) against No. 12 James Madison (26-8). The first-round winners will meet on Monday.

‘Sleep in your own bed’

Kentucky coach Kenny Brooks, whose team hosted the first two rounds in the NCAAs last year, said there’s some added stress of being a host school because of expectations to win, while visiting teams can play freely because “they have nothing to lose.”

Kellogg wasn’t taking the bait, saying he hasn’t felt the pressure.

“That’s a veteran coach, I think, just trying to plant a seed, potentially,“ Kellogg said.

Shaw sees it differently, too.

“Every time I put my head on my pillow, I go to sleep with a smile on my face, giggling myself to sleep because I’m so excited,” Shaw said. “It’s a big deal to not have to pack your bags, honestly. You get to sleep in your own bed. So I’m grateful for that.”

Brooks vs. former school

Brooks graduated from James Madison in 1992. He went 337-122 and led the Dukes to six NCAA berths over 14 seasons, leaving in 2016 as the school’s winningest coach. He’ll watch his former school from the other sideline on Saturday.

“It’s 10 years removed and I’m obviously proud as an alum of everything that’s happened to James Madison,” Brooks said. “But tomorrow it will be another game.”

Before coming to Kentucky two years ago, Brooks spent eight seasons at Virginia Tech. The Hokies lost to James Madison in the 2019 National Invitation Tournament. Brooks led Virginia Tech to the Final Four in 2023 before losing to eventual national champion LSU.

Sean O’Regan was Brooks’ longtime assistant at James Madison and took over for his former boss in 2016. The Dukes won the Sun Belt Conference tournament and are in the NCAA Tournament for the second time in four seasons.

A sweet reward awaits

Miami’s men’s basketball team captured most of the attention on campus back in Oxford, Ohio, finishing as the nation’s only unbeaten team during the regular season at 31-0, qualifying for the NCAA Tournament and winning its First Four game over SMU on Wednesday.

Not to be outdone, the women’s team set a program record for wins that included their first Mid-American Conference tournament title since 2008.

If the RedHawks leave Morgantown with a trip secured to the Sweet 16, they’ll likely stop somewhere for ice cream — a road-trip tradition under third-year coach Glenn Box, who like Kellogg is in his first major-college head coaching job.

“I’m willing to give them whatever they want after they win,” Box said. “Winning should be fun.”

Defensive Mountaineers

West Virginia isn’t known for putting on shooting clinics, instead relying on its full-court pressure defense to create scoring opportunities.

The Mountaineers force 22 turnovers per game, led by Big 12 steals leader and defensive player of the year Jordan Harrison. West Virginia’s 18.2-point scoring margin is the 13th highest among teams in the NCAA field. In three meetings with TCU this season, West Virginia held the Horned Frogs to their two lowest point totals of the season.

Shaw remembers when she arrived at West Virginia a year ago and learned the rigors of playing against her own defense.

“It was rough. I was struggling out there,” Shaw said. “So I can only imagine (the challenge for) a team that’s never seen it.”

Miami averages nearly 16 turnovers but has its own defensive prowess. Both teams are limiting opponents to under 59 points per game.