West Virginia

Jerry West and Us – WV MetroNews

Published

7 months ago

June 17, 2024

Feb 2, 2019; Morgantown, WV, USA; Former West Virginia Mountaineers player Jerry West is honored at halftime at WVU Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports

The news last week about the death of Jerry West was a stunner. Jerry West, dead? Of course, West, like the rest of us, faced mortality, but he was not like the rest of us, was he?

Unless we stopped to think about it, it just felt as though West would always be there. He was so etched in the psyche of West Virginians that he was immortalized.

Jerry West. Just saying his name in any sports conversation triggered stories. One old timer remembered seeing West play in the old Field House at WVU. Another remembered watching West’s heroics with the Lakers. Many others said West was their hero growing up.

As West Virginians, we clung to him desperately. Regardless of whatever disparaging remark was made about our state, no matter what struggles we endured, we always had Jerry West. His greatness was undisputed, and we basked in that.

West fans suffered through WVU’s one-point loss in the national championship game to California in 1959 and the eight Laker losses in the NBA championships during his tenure, but West, by his own admission, internalized the losses as personal failures.

Finally, after the Lakers beat the New York Knicks to win the title in 1972, West said, “This is one summer I’m really going to enjoy.” However, that joy was short-lived since the Lakers lost the title game the following season to the Knicks.

Yet, through it all West was consistently recognized as one of the greatest players in league history. He is the only player on a losing team to be named MVP of the NBA finals (1969 loss to the Celtics). Perhaps that, more than anything, is indicative of his NBA career.

He is also regarded as one of the greatest sports general managers. He assembled the talent for the Laker dynasty in the 1980s and was responsible for the famous deal that brought free agent Shaquille O’Neal to Lakers, while drafting Kobe Bryant out of high school.

West was not a warm and fuzzy hero to us. As the New York Times wrote in West’s obituary, “Both [Roland] Lazenby’s biography and West’s own book depict him as a troubled perfectionist and a relentless, pitiless self-examiner—someone who, in West own words, was ‘aloof and inscrutable,’ possessed of ‘a demon-filled mind’ and unable to fully enjoy his many successes.:”

That was on full display in West’s candid memoir, “West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life.” He wrote of growing up in West Virginia, “I am the fifth of six children, raised in a home, a series of them actually, that was spotless but where I never learned what love was, and am still not entirely sure I know today.”

We wanted to meet him, talk to him, honor him, but West typically shied away from that. He wrote, “I have always, all my life, experienced an odd sensation whenever I am singled out. I am embarrassed by the attention, uncomfortable with it.”

We did not know or fully understand this about our hero until that book was published 13 years ago, and we are fortunate that he had the courage to write so honestly about himself. He gave us the opportunity to see him as more than a sports icon with GOAT statistics, but rather as a complicated, conflicted and tortured human being.

That autobiography was yet another example of West giving everything he had into a project, pushing through the emotional pain threshold to provide a brutally frank accounting of his life. Unfortunately, some will make judgements about West based on the inaccurate portrayal of him as a crazed and ill-tempered executive in the ham-handed HBO series “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty.” West may have been driven to obsession, but he was not an angry maniac. West was deeply offended by the depiction, and we were too.

I wonder if West was ever able to appreciate what he gave to us? Whether he knew it or not, he carried us with him on those broad, square shoulders throughout his life. We celebrated his successes and suffered along with him at the defeats.

Of course, he suffered more than all of us put together. That often comes with greatness; the agonizing belief that you are never quite good enough. But we know that Jerry West gave all that he had and more.

Even if he could not fully appreciate all that he accomplished, we as West Virginians did throughout his life, and we still can as part of his legacy.

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West Virginia

Oklahoma State basketball vs. West Virginia: Prediction, picks for Cowgirls-Mountaineers

Published

2 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Oklahoma State basketball vs. West Virginia: Prediction, picks for Cowgirls-Mountaineers

STILLWATER — One quick look at the top part of the Big 12 women’s basketball standings tells you how big this West Virginia at Oklahoma State game is.

The Cowgirls (13-2, 3-1 Big 12) are tied for third place in the league with WVU (13-2, 3-1), and while there’s a lot of basketball left to be played, this game could be important as the standings shake out in late February.

Here’s what you need to know about the matchup:

A duel of conflicting strengths

Though OSU’s offense has been struggling lately, it still remains the best in the Big 12, putting up 84.4 points per game. West Virginia, on the other hand, is the second-best defense in the league, giving up just 51.1 points per game.

The Cowgirls’ recent shooting struggles are the bigger concern. They’ve scored just 66 and 64 points in the last two games, most recently defeating Cincinnati 64-48.

Can Anna Gret Asi heat up?

A key piece of Oklahoma State’s offensive attack is combo guard Anna Gret Asi, but the senior hasn’t been seeing shots fall lately.

Over the last two games, Asi is 1 for 16 from the floor and 0 for 12 from 3-point range. That has dropped her 3-point percentage from 42.9% to 37.1%.

Cowgirls must avoid turnovers

OSU’s guard-heavy lineup has been reliable in taking care of the ball this season, averaging just 14.2 turnovers per game.

That will be critical in holding off WVU on Saturday. The Mountaineers rank fourth nationally and well ahead of everyone else in the Big 12 in turnovers forced, causing 25.9 per game.

How to watch OSU-West Virginia women

The Cowgirls and Mountaineers will be broadcast on ESPN+ at 2 p.m. Saturday. Streaming for the game can be found here. The OSU radio broadcast will be on KGFY 105.5 FM.

Score prediction for OSU-West Virginia women

West Virginia 64, OSU 63: A few key Cowgirls, like Asi, have been cold from the floor in recent games, and that trend is sure to turn in their favor soon. But West Virginia’s defense might be catching OSU at the ideal time to steal a road win.

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West Virginia

Which NFL Franchise’s History Most Compares to West Virginia Football?

Published

12 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Which NFL Franchise’s History Most Compares to West Virginia Football?

West Virginia is one of the most successful programs in college football history. As a matter of fact, they are the winningest team in college football without a national championship.

Is that a good thing? Well, yes and no.

It shows that the program has consistently won and is at a high enough level to be among the best programs in the country. However, it’s certainly not a label that Mountaineers fans are exactly proud of. The 1988 and 2007 seasons are still burned into the memory bank of WVU fans and getting back to the big dance in this day and age is a tall task.

The Mountaineers entered the 1988 Fiesta Bowl against Notre Dame with an unblemished record and clobbered many of their opponents on their path to the big game. Unfortunately, star dual-threat quarterback Major Harris injured his shoulder on the third play of the game and wasn’t the same player the rest of the game. The Mountaineers would fall to the Fighting Irish 34-21.

In 2007, well you all Mountaineer fans know the story. But for those who don’t, West Virginia entered the final week of the season ranked second in the country and all they needed to do was beat a 3-8 Pitt team in the Backyard Brawl, at home, to secure a spot in the national championship.

The high-powered WVU offense went stagnant as star quarterback Pat White injured his non-throwing hand early in the game. White didn’t return until late in the fourth quarter and the Panthers were able to hang on to pull off the stunning upset, defeating the Mountaineers 13-9.

That was the last time WVU has been on the doorstep of a national title.

So, which team in the NFL has shared that same level of misery yet has been a consistently winning organization? That would be the Minnesota Vikings.

They have the best winning percentage of any team in the NFL who have yet to win a Super Bowl. Only the Dallas Cowboys, Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Ravens, Chicago Bears, New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins, and Kansas City Chiefs have a better winning percentage, but they all have Lombardi Trophies.

Now, technically, the Detroit Lions have the most wins of any NFL team without a Super Bowl win, but they have a winning percentage of .455, so it’s not exactly an accurate representation of the success West Virginia has had at the collegiate level.

West Virginia

Cover WV aims to empower West Virginians with insurance knowledge

Published

21 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Cover WV aims to empower West Virginians with insurance knowledge

BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. (WBOY) — Dozens of locations across West Virginia participated in the second annual Cover WV Day on Thursday, where more than 20 organizations offered free assistance to those who need health insurance or feel they are underinsured.

According to Cover WV’s website, more than 100,000 West Virginians lack health coverage, so this event aimed to bridge the gap and answer questions. Community Care Bridgeport Case Manager Zach Morehead said that uninsured people is something that he and his team “encounter pretty regularly.”

“As we all know it can be very confusing so we’re happy to walk you through it step by step, you know, really, take the gloves off and explain everything to you as much or as little as you need,” Morehead said.

Even if you were not able to get to the locations on Thursday, places like Community Care will still be able to help you out virtually or in person until Jan. 15. Morehead recommended coming in earlier rather than later.

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