Eilert notices defensive shortcomings as the Mountaineers get ready to welcome Texas.

W.Va.’s MORGANTOWN Over the past two and a half months, West Virginia has faced several difficulties.

The Mountaineers have only won once in their previous six games and are 0-2 in Big 12 Conference play, but they haven’t been able to overcome most of them up to this point.

There are many areas that need to be improved, as WVU interim head coach Josh Eilert knows, as the Mountaineers get ready to host No. 25 Texas at 6 p.m. on Saturday in a game that will be televised by Big 12 Now on ESPN+. But after allowing 89 and 81 points in consecutive losses to Kansas State at home and Houston, respectively, over the last week, nothing stands out to Eilert more than his team’s defense—or lack thereof.

“We have to quickly shore up the defensive end, but we can certainly be more efficient on the offensive end and score more points,” stated Eilert.

It will be difficult to overcome the Longhorns (12-3, 1-1), who defeated Texas Tech 74-73 in their conference opener last Saturday. The Longhorns play in Cincinnati on Tuesday.

Texas boasts one of the most evenly distributed scoring lineups in collegiate basketball, with five players scoring between 11.1 and 17.1 points on average.

Guard Max Abmas, an Oral Roberts transfer and one of the best long-range shooters in college basketball history, leads that bunch. Abmas excels at the three-point line, averaging 17.1 points (43 of 108).

The other Longhorns in double figures are Dylan Disu, Tyrese Hunter, Dillon Mitchell, and Kadin Shedrick; however, Shedrick was sidelined for the Bearcat game due to back spasms he sustained against the Red Raiders.

“Due to his exceptional skill, Dylan Disu would be the starting five man if he were still dealing with that ailment. Not only is their size and rebounding a constant problem, but they also switch up our defense, according to Eilert. They are among the best in the nation when it comes to descending. We need to work out a way to recover, find a match, and make all of that up.

Rodney Terry, who took over as interim head coach for Texas last season, has since been named permanent head coach after leading the

The Longhorns are ninth among 14 Big 12 teams in scoring offense at 78.5 points per game, while the Mountaineers are last in the league in scoring defense by surrendering an average of 71.6 — a figure that’s greatly increased as a result of 170 points allowed over a pair of league games.

“They’re talented from top to bottom for sure,” Eilert said of the Longhorns. “It has to be a team mentality. It has to be us versus them and not me versus my matchup. We talked a lot about that yesterday and I used that exact terminology with them. We can’t get into a mindset of it’s my matchup and I’m going to guard this guy and this guy

While Eilert believes better communication and a more collective effort would help the Mountaineers limit opponents’ offensive outputs, there is also an element of personal pride, according to WVU’sRodney Terry, who took over as interim head coach for Texas last season, has since been named permanent head coach after leading the “That was one of the things I remember most about Huggs is that he got you take things personal,” said Suemnick, who earned his first career start against the Wildcats after totaling 21 points and 10 rebounds over the two previous games. “If your man scored on you, he’s ripping you a new one and saying, ‘is he better