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West Virginia, Grand Canyon Set To Meet for First Time

Opening round CBI game slated for 7 p.m.

MORGANTOWN — Every head coach of every basketball program in America has their reasons for continuing their team’s season for as long as they can.

West Virginia’s Bob Huggins is no different.

“I think it’s more important to play the games,” Huggins explained during Monday’s final Big 12 Teleconference of the season. “The more we get, the better they will get.”

For that reason, the soon-to-be Hall of Fame leader of the Mountaineers (14-20) elected to accept an invitation to the College Basketball Invitational.

WVU’s first-round opponent will be WAC member Grand Canyon University (20-13), coached by Dan Majerle.

“Ronnie (assistant Ron Everhart) was here with our film people working on the scouting report,” Huggins, who suffered his first 20-loss season in his career, said. “They will have a plan for us to work on when the guys show up for practice later today.”

Tickets for the 7 p.m. game tonight, which is not slated for television coverage, are selling for $10 each with parking being offered for free.

“I think we grew a lot in this tournament (the Big 12),” Moundsville native Chase Harler explained. “I’m sure most people didn’t even expect us to get past Wednesday (against Oklahoma) or counted us out (against Texas Tech).

“I think the direction we’re going is the right direction and playing can only build chemistry and make us better next year.”

But that added experience comes with a price as WVU will be asked to pay $40,000 to play host to its first-round matchup with the Antelopes and if it wins and wants to remain in Morgantown for the next round, Director of Athletics Shane Lyons will have to come up with another $40,000 check.

Majerle, known as “Thunder Dan” during his 14-year NBA career, will come to Morgantown for the first time with four players averaging in double figures — guards Carlos Johnson (14.6 ppg) and Damari Milstead (10.3 ppg) and forwards Alessandro Lever (12.7 ppg) and Michael Finke (12.2 ppg).

Two other players — Trey Drechsel (8.2 ppg) and Oscar Frayer (7.3 ppg) — have seen significant time on the court for the Antelopes while Matt Jackson (4.2 ppg), Gerald Martin (3.8 ppg) and Roberts Blumbergs (3.2 ppg) round out Majerle’s rotation.

WVU’s Huggins will stay with the same starting five the veteran went with in Kansas City — freshmen Derek Culver (11.7 ppg), Jordan McCabe (5.6 ppg) and Emmitt Matthews Jr. (4.7 ppg) and juniors Lamont West (10.8 ppg) and Jermaine Haley (6.5 ppg).

Harler (5.0 ppg), South Charleston’s Brandon Knapper (5.2 ppg) and Cameron’s Logan Routt (2.3 ppg) will continue to be the first off of the bench for Huggins.

The winner of tonight’s contest will take on the winner of the Coastal Carolina/Howard game on March 25.

“I’m proud of my teammates after what we went through this year,” Harler said. “Hopefully that continues into the CBI tournament.”

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