West Virginia @ Youngstown St. preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 1, 2018 ) Youngstown St. 72, West Virginia 106

West Virginia has bounced back from its lone defeat with a vengeance, rolling to a pair of lopsided victories to remain perfect in six games at home. Vying for their 10th win, the Mountaineers will play only their third true road game of the season against another undefeated team at home when they visit Youngstown State on Saturday afternoon.

Prize freshman forward Oscar Tshiebwe has more than lived up to the hype, leading West Virginia in scoring (12.3 points) and ranking second in rebounding (9.5). The Mountaineers, idle for a week since dismantling Nicholls 84-57, have won all five meetings against Youngstown State, including a 106-72 rout last season in which the Penguins launched 36 3-point attempts. "I don't think they are shooting as many threes as they shot a year ago, but they really do try and exploit the line," West Virginia coach Bob Huggins said. "I'm more concerned with how we're going to score and how we're going to keep them from scoring." Winners of two straight and three of four, Youngstown State of the Horizon League improved to 6-0 at home with a 73-55 victory over Binghamton on Wednesday.

TV: 1 p.m. ET, No TV

ABOUT YOUNGSTOWN STATE (7-5): Junior forward Naz Bohannon, who pulled down 10 rebounds in last season's loss at West Virginia, tied a career high with 19 points to go along with seven boards and five assists in Wednesday's win. Guard Darius Quisenberry has been held under double digits in three of the last five games but tops the team in scoring (14.6 points) while averaging 3.2 assists and 1.8 steals. Quisenberry is 20-of-54 from the floor in his last five games and 6-of-25 from long range in the last six.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA (9-1): The Mountaineers will enjoy a decided advantage up front with the tandem of the 6-foot-9, 258-pound Tshiebwe and 6-10, 255-pound Derek Culver, a native of Youngstown. Culver registered his third double-double in four games with 16 points and 16 rebounds against Nicholls, hitting 6-of-9 shots and contributing six points in a game-breaking 20-6 run. "If you all knew how far he's come. He's come a long way," Huggins said of Culver, who averages a team-best 9.6 boards. "He just continues to get better."

TIP-INS

1. Mountaineers G Jermaine Haley, the team's second-leading scorer (11.1 points), will be available Saturday after being held out of the last game.

2. The Penguins are 6-0 at home for the first time since 2010-11.

3. West Virginia will have two monster tests awaiting them after the Christmas break, facing No. 4 Ohio State on Dec. 29 and top-ranked Kansas to open Big 12 play on Jan. 4.

PREDICTION: West Virginia 87, Youngstown State 69