Thursday night at the Verizon Center in the nation’s capitol will be an exciting night for the Mountaineer Nation.  With thousands expecting to make their way in a sea of Old Gold and Blue the Mountaineers will make this venue as uncomfortable as possible for the Wildcats.  How will the Wildcats handle the Mountaineers?  Can they slow down or even stop Joe Alexander from scoring 30?  How much do we really know about the Pac 10 and the Arizona Wildcats?

The Wildcats, despite being 19-14 plus a below .500 conference record, are in the Big Dance for the 24th consecutive season thanks in large part to playing one of the toughest schedules in the nation.  They played ten NCAA tournament teams, including Memphis, Kansas, and Texas A&M, for a combined record of 6-10.  In spite of their success they have gone through a lot of adversity from day one.  Longtime legendary head coach Lute Olson sat out the season due to a bitter divorce battle with his second wife.  This is just a few years after his longtime soulmate Bobbi Olson subcomed to breast cancer.  In his place is former NBA assistant, ex-Marquette coach, and Larry David’s stunt-double (for those who watch Curb Your Enthusiasm) Kevin O’Neill.  O’Neill and Coach Huggs had a history together back in the days of the Great Midwest Conference.

Of course, with a team like Arizona you know damn well they got some talent.  Phoenix native Jerryd Bayless is the star player for the Cats.  This diaper dandy has been the leader of the pack as he averages 20 points a game with 4 assists.  Another star the Eers must keep a close guard on is sophomore surfer dude Chase Budinger.  Budinger averages 17 points a game while making 71 treys all season.  What may determine the Mountaineers success is controlling Jordan Hill.  The 6-10 sophomore from the ATL averages 13 points and close to 8 rebounds a game.  He shoots 62.2% from the field and leads the team with 55 blocks.

This is a real tough Pac-10 team compared to the past couple of years when WVU played the likes of Creighton, Southern Illinois, and Northwestern State to go on to successful tourney runs.  For the Mountaineers to make to the Elite Eight, which will not be an easy task, they will likely face the Duke Blue Devils on Saturday afternoon and possibly Xavier and UCLA next week in Phoenix.  Coach Huggs and the people’s assistant Billy Hahn will get these troops ready for battle.  A big game is needed for everyone who wears a Mountaineer uniform even Jaime Smalligan.  Let’s get this first-round win tonight.  Cheer strong Maniacs and GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MOUNTAINEERS!