West Virginia
West Virginia coach fires off trash talk at Iowa, Caitlin Clark before tournament
The West Virginia Mountaineers women’s basketball team was selected as the No. 8 seed in the Albany Region 2 of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament on Sunday and may be on a collision course with No. 1 Iowa in the second round.
At least that’s what head coach Mark Kellogg suggested in his speech to rally his fans at a Selection Sunday party.
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“I already told them let’s win one and send Caitlin Clark packing,” he said.
The Mountaineers will have to get past No. 9 Princeton before potentially taking on Iowa in the Round of 32. The Tigers defeated Columbia to win the Ivy League Tournament on Saturday. The Tigers have made it to the second round of the tournament in each of the last two seasons.
Clark and Iowa will have a target on their back entering the tournament given the media spotlight that has shined on the team all season long. Clark started the season in pursuit of Kelsey Plum’s all-time scoring record in NCAA Division 1 women’s basketball and ended up surpassing not only Plum but Lynette Woodard and Pete Maravich in the history books.
2024 NCAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT SELECTIONS REVEALED
The Hawkeyes’ road back to the national championship won’t be smooth. Should they get past either Holy Cross or UT-Martin, and then either West Virginia or Princeton, teams like Colorado, LSU and UCLA all have the potential to spoil their run.
But West Virginia hopes to be that team before anyone else gets to Iowa.
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“Let’s go dancing!! Proud of our team… they’ve earned the opportunity to represent in the NCAA Tournament! Let’s do this Mountaineers!!” Kellogg wrote on X.
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West Virginia
Cincinnati Withdraws from Dual Meet Against West Virginia, Sparking Controversy
The University of Cincinnati has withdrawn from its scheduled dual meet against West Virginia scheduled for Friday afternoon and Saturday morning in Morgantown, West Virginia. The meet was scheduled to be the teams’ second as Big 12 opponents after splitting the victories last season in a two-day affair hosted by Cincinnati. There, the Bearcats won the women’s meet 241-112 and the Mountaineers won the men’s meet 162-191.
West Virginia posted the news of the cancellation on their Instagram page, with assistant coach Sydney Pickrem calling it a “huge disappointment for our swimmers” on her story, adding “Let’s continue to build this sport & always strive to achieve the highest level, especially when we RACE.”
Individuals close to the West Virginia program are telling SwimSwam that Cincinnati forfeited the meet because of a dispute over whether to wear technical racing suits. West Virginia wanted to wear the suits and Cincinnati did not, and felt that this would put them at a disadvantage.
Neither coaching staff took the opportunity to dispute that narrative.
Cincinnati head coach Mandy Commons-DiSalle is currently the president of the Board of Directors of the Collegiate Swimming & Diving Coaches’ Association of America (CSCAA)
Historically, collegiate dual meets have been raced almost-exclusively in ‘practice suits,’ with tech suits reserved for championship meets and mid-season invitationals. More recently, however, teams have taken to wearing their fast-suits for every meet as a way to more specifically prepare for the racing that will take place in those championships. That includes the Arizona State Sun Devils, who used the tactic en route to last year’s NCAA Men’s Championship in swimming & diving.
These suits improve times by reducing drag, providing muscle compression, and allowing athletes to maintain a better posture in the water.
West Virginia’s official Instagram account “liked” a comment by program alum Logan McFadden saying that “Somebody got scared and doesn’t want to come to town anymore.”
At last year’s Big 12 Championship meet, Cincinnati’s first in the conference, the Bearcats finished ahead of West Virginia in both meets. On the women’s side, Cincinnati was 4th with 918.50 points and West Virginia was 6th with 699 points. On the men’s side, Cincinnati was 4th with 1285.50 points and West Virginia was 5th with 1138.50 points.
West Virginia
West Virginia looks to move forward after change in defensive leadership
West Virginia has a new defensive coordinator after head coach Neal Brown elected to move from Jordan Lesley following a 4-4 start to the season.
Lesley, who had been with the Mountaineers since 2019, had served as the leader of the defense since the 2020 season when he was elevated to the role after the dismissal of Vic Koenning.
The assistant shared the role the first season with co-defensive coordinator Jahmile Addae, and the unit finished No. 21 in scoring defense in 2020 allowing just 20.5 points per game and that total was even higher in total defense at No. 4 nationally surrendering just 291.4 yards per contest.
In 2021 Lesley took over full-time and the unit ranked 44th nationally permitting 23.85 points per game and at No. 37 nationally yielding 350.2 yards per contest. That took a dip in 2022 as the defense was at 116th in scoring defense giving up 32.9 points per game and 98th in total yards with 412.1 per contest.
Things improved last season as West Virginia was at 64th in scoring defense at 26.2 per game and 68th in yards at 380.8 but so far this year it had been a struggle for the defense.
West Virginia is 97th in scoring defense giving up 28.4 points per game and 84th in total defense. The Mountaineers were perched at 114th in passing defense and struggled mightily in that department for most of the season to date. Those issues prompted Brown to make the decision make a change.
“I met with Coach Lesley this morning and informed him that we are making a change at the defensive coordinator position. I’m very thankful for the investment Jordan and his family have made in West Virginia football. Jordan has been a key part of my staff for almost a decade,” Brown said in a statement.
The decision means that West Virginia will owe Lesley the remainder of his $775,000 salary for this season as well as $800,000 for next season. The Mountaineers also could offset the payment amount with any future employment based on what he earns at his next stop.
Now, the focus is on the final four games of the season with inside linebackers coach Jeff Koonz assuming the role atop the defense and the Mountaineers will look to make the most of their remaining opportunities.
Koonz has served as a co-defensive coordinator during his time at Cincinnati and now will have a chance to prove that he is capable in the role for the remainder of this season.
“These decisions are never easy, but I’m confident this change is in the best interest of our program and puts us in the best position to finish strong. Our players have a tremendous opportunity in front of them, and I know they will give their all for WVU. Jeff Koonz will step up and serve as the defensive coordinator moving forward. I know he and our entire staff will do everything they can to help us succeed,” Brown said.
West Virginia
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