GAME NOTES: The West Virginia Mountaineers try to complete a perfect two-game homestand today, as they welcome the Seton Hall Pirates to Morgantown for a Big East affair. The Mountaineers hosted Rutgers on Thursday and they were offered little resistance in an 81-63 triumph. It was the second win in three games for WVU, which improved to 17-7 overall and 6-5 in conference play. Up next for the Mountaineers is a bout at Villanova on Wednesday. As for SHU, it has followed up a five-game win streak by dropping each of its past four outings. The team is coming off a simply dismal performance on Tuesday, falling to Marquette, 89-64, at home. With the recent slide, the Pirates now sit at 15-10 overall and just 5-7 in league action. The all-time series between SHU and WVU is knotted at 11-11, with the Mountaineers winning the past three meetings in Morgantown.

The Pirates turned the ball over 17 times and that led to 33 points for Marquette in a lopsided loss on Tuesday. SHU shot just 38.0 percent from the floor in the contest and it was dominated on the boards, 43-29. Jeremy Hazell paced the team in defeat with 18 points, while Brian Laing had 17 points and a pair of steals. Laing ranks among the top scorers in the Big East with an average of 19.0 ppg for the season and he also leads the Pirates in rebounding at 7.2 rpg. Eugene Harvey is second in order at 14.8 ppg and he is dishing out 4.7 apg to lead the team in that department. Hazell chips in with 12.4 ppg, and Jamar Nutter rounds out the double figure scorers with 10.5 ppg. As a team, SHU is scoring a hardy 79.3 ppg, although it is giving up an alarming 78.2 ppg.

WVU forced Rutgers into 17 turnovers and it was able to generate 29 points off those miscues in a win on Thursday. The Mountaineers, themselves, committing just four turnovers and they converted 23-of-26 attempts a the foul line. Joe Alexander led the charge with 15 points and nine rebounds, while Alex Ruoff posted 14 points. For the season, Alexander tops the roster in scoring at 14.3 ppg and he is also pulling down a team-high 5.9 rpg. Ruoff nips at his heels with 14.1 ppg and he is shooting 43.4 percent from long range. Da'Sean Butler puts forth 12.4 ppg and 5.5 rpg for WVU, while Darris Nichols chips in with 12.0 ppg. Overall, the Mountaineers are outscoring their foes by 14.9 ppg this season, and they own a +6.4 turnover margin.

The Mountaineers are playing better than SHU right now and with another solid performance at both ends of the floor, they should be able to notch the victory today.