Pregame glance: Western Carolina

Ohio State’s opponent this Sunday will be the Catamounts of Western Carolina.  Coming off a closer-than-expected game against IUPUI on Thursday that saw Jared Sullinger drop 40 points, the Buckeyes will seek to extend their undefeated streak to 8-0 against the Catamounts.  The game will be played in classic St. John Arena on the campus of Ohio State, which always promises to be a raucous good time.  Let us turn our attention to the visiting team…

Western Carolina comes to Columbus sporting a 4-7 record and hoping to halt a three-game losing skid.  If the last game for both teams serves as any indication, this game is likely to turn into a route in the second half.  In their previous game against the Campbell Camels, Western Carolina failed to score a single point over the final 8:30 of the game.  In contrast, the Buckeyes came on strong in the final minutes against IUPUI with Sullinger leading the scoring surge to run away with the game.  Nevertheless, the Buckeyes will need to be well prepared, and after a less-than-optimal performance against IUPUI, they should come out with something to prove.

Last season the Catamounts finished with a 22-12 record, and coming into the current season were picked to finish second in the North Division of the conference.  Despite not making the NCAA tournament last season, it was clearly a successful run for the team.  However, the Catamounts have their work cut out for them if they are to repeat their performance, as numerous key players were lost to graduation from the 2009-10 squad.

Leading the way for Western Carolina in the current campaign is senior guard Mike Williams, who is averaging around 16 points per game on the season.  No other player on the team averages double-figures in scoring, which is not surprising given the way that minutes are spread among the players.  Williams also leads the team in minutes played, but tops out at an average of 30 per game, with as many as nine teammates seeing significant action on a regular basis.  The statistics would suggest that the Catamounts do have some difficulty at times finding the basket, shooting at a clip of less than 40%.

Among the team’s roster is junior guard Harouna Mutombo, son of long-time NBA star Dikembe Mutombo.  While playing professionally, Mutombo the elder was an intimidating defender and shot-blocker who patented the “wag the finger” gesture after sending back an opponent’s shot.  While free-throw shooting may be at the top of Dallas Lauderdale’s priority list of things to practice, he could take a lesson from Dikembe and develop his own signature taunt to use after each of his numerous rejections.  In fact, this Sunday would be a perfect time to introduce the gesture, particularly after blocking one of Mutombo the son’s shots.  Because that wouldn’t be in poor taste.

While Western Carolina’s team has been somewhat unremarkable thus far, they were able to generate some interest from the student body at the start of the season.  Some reading on the Western Carolina athletics website reveals that students (and other fans) turned out in force to support the team at their opening rally, which featured a dance-off and obstacle course challenge between the men’s and women’s teams, although the story notes that “a clear-cut winner wasn’t actually named as both teams got into the action of hampering the other team’s progress.”  Good times in the hills of Carolina!

Our game against the Catamounts will be played at 2:00pm on Sunday, and can be viewed on the Big Ten Network’s online stream.  Here is the stat comparison for the starting lineups: