West Virginia @ Iowa State preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 24, 2018 ) Iowa State 70, West Virginia 85

Iowa State coach Steve Prohm has been inundated with questions about a potential change to his starting lineup despite trotting out the same five players at the onset of the last 19 games. Prohm has insisted that he has seven legitimate starters, however, and plans to use that grouping at his discretion on Wednesday when the 20th-ranked Cyclones host Big 12 rival West Virginia at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa.

"It's like I told the guys, Marial Shayok is the leading scorer in the Big 12 and he didn't play the last 12 minutes (in Saturday's 87-73 win over Mississippi)," Prohm said. "Whoever I think gives us the best opportunity, that's when I think we're at our best." Lindell Wigginton scored 18 points versus the Rebels and would be in line to regain the starter's role he relinquished after injuring his heel in the season opener, but freshmen point guard Talen Horton-Tucker has pumped in 39 points in two games against Top 25 teams last week. West Virginia would love to have that dilemma as opposed to its more pressing issue: losses in seven of its last eight games while surrendering an average of 83.0 points in the past five. "We generally take pride in being able to guard. This group's pretty much made me a liar," Mountaineers coach Bob Huggins said after his team's defense failed to protect an early 12-point lead in an 83-66 setback to top-ranked Tennessee on Saturday.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPNU

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA (9-11, 1-6 Big 12): Senior forward Esa Ahmad made 6-of-8 shots from the field and finished with 16 points against the Volunteers to move within one point of becoming the Mountaineers' 53rd player to reach 1,000 in his career. Freshman forward Derek Culver answered a dismal performance in an 85-73 setback to Baylor by shooting 7-of-11 from the field and finishing with 15 points versus Tennessee to reach double figures in seven of his 10 games. Lamont West's troubles from the field continued, however, as he went 1-for-7 against the Volunteers and is 6-for-22 in the last four games -- including 2-for-12 from 3-point range.

ABOUT IOWA STATE (15-5, 4-3): Horton-Tucker dismissed the notion of hitting the dreaded "freshman wall" after answering a stretch in which he reached double figures in nine of his first 11 games by shooting 15-for-50 from the field for 42 points over the next seven contests. Horton-Tucker then returned to form with 16 points in an 80-76 setback at Kansas on Jan. 21 before erupting for 23 versus Ole Miss. "Shots started going in," said the 6-foot-4 Horton-Tucker, who leads all Big 12 freshmen in scoring at 12.0 points per game. "Against Kansas, I made my first few shots and I feel like confidence came back. I didn't really lose much confidence, but shots just started falling and the same thing happened at Ole Miss."

TIP-INS

1. West Virginia owns a 3-8 mark since leading scorer F Sagaba Konate (13.6 ppg, 8.0 rpg) sustained a knee injury.

2. Wigginton scored 29 points on 10-of-23 shooting from the field in an 85-70 setback to the Mountaineers on Feb. 24.

3. West Virginia G James Bolden (12.2 ppg) will miss Wednesday's game due to the ankle injury he sustained against Tennessee.

PREDICTION: Iowa State 83, West Virginia 67