WVU tries get back on track against Marquette

After West Virginia's 10-point loss to Georgetown Tuesday, head coach Mike Carey emphasized the importance of his guards getting to the basket and attacking the rim.

The more the guards understood this part of the game, the better off they will be going forward, he said.

"We have to get better at that, or I have got to get somebody in here who can do that," Carey said of his team after Tuesday's game against Georgetown. "It is as simple as that. That is a weakness of ours now is that we don't get into the paint and make something happen."

The Mountaineers (14-6, 4-3) will look to be more aggressive this weekend when they host Marquette (12-8, 3-4) Saturday.

The Golden Eagles are currently on a two-game losing streak, though they are young and athletic like the Mountaineers, having no seniors and only one junior on their squad this season.

So, it is likely both teams will have to rely on solid defense and limiting the amount of turnovers to come away with a victory – something Carey was pleased with on the defensive side in the team's previous game.

"I was very proud of our girls," Carey said. "We were not scoring, but our defense was pretty dang good … We don't score enough not to play great defense, and when they get away from us, this has happened the last four or five games now, we let them score a lot more points on the other end."

Marquette's youth has been displayed throughout the season, as it averages only 52.4 points per game compared the WVU's 67.8, but the scoring comes from a balanced attack on offense.

Sophomore forward Katherine Plouffe averages 12.4 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, while junior forward Sarina Simmons and sophomore guard Katie Young both average 8.7 points per game.

WVU redshirt sophomore guard Christal Caldwell has continued her hot hand, scoring 25 points and grabbing nine boards against Georgetown. Caldwell is now third on the team in scoring at 11.2 points per game, and second in rebounds at 6.8 per game.

The Mountaineers will continue to give her the ball in crucial moments, while trying to get the inside players such as junior center Asya Bussie and redshirt junior Ayana Dunning more involved in the offense.

Even considering how well Caldwell has been playing recently, Carey still stressed the importance of getting into the paint and creating and making easier shots for everyone on offense, including Caldwell.

"We just have to become better playmakers," he said. "We just don't get in the paint. If you see other guards, they lower that shoulder and that head, and they drive us right into that paint, and we don't do that. We practice it, we teach it, but we are not doing it."

In games after West Virginia has lost this season, it has averaged 76.8 points - nine points higher than its season average. In two of those games, the Mountaineers scored more than 90 points.