Welcome to the Game Thread. Veterans of the Game Thread know how we do things around here but, for the uninitiated, we have a few rules. Our community guidelines apply and basically say be cool, no personal attacks, and don’t be a troll.

WHEN/WHERE

Date: Thursday, November 18, 2021

Tip-Off Time: 9:00 PM ET

Where: TD Arena, Charleston, South Carolina

WATCH/LISTEN

Channel: ESPN2 | DirecTV 209; Dish 143

Announcers: Rich Hollenberg and Debbie Antonelli

Online Streaming: ESPN with a valid cable subscription

Cord Cutters: Mountaineer fans can catch all the action on fuboTV. fuboTV is an over-the-top streaming service that carries all the major networks, including CBS, NBC, FOX, and now....the ESPN Disney networks! It also carries ABC, CBS Sports Network, FS1, SEC Network, and more. fuboTV comes with a cloud DVR feature, so you can record the game and watch it later.

Sign up for a free seven day trial of fuboTV, and get 15% off the base family plan, by following THIS LINK.

Radio: Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG (Radio Affiliates) | WVU Gameday App (Apple | Android) | XM 380

Radio Announcers: Tony Caridi and Jay Jacobs

Betting Odds: West Virginia -14, Total 135 points via DraftKings Sportsbook

Reminder: It is against site policy to post links to illegal streams in the comments.

THE ENEMY

Where are they from? Elon, North Carolina

Series History: West Virginia and Elon are meeting for the second time in series play. The only other meeting took place in Morgantown on Nov. 15, 2008, a 92-47 Mountaineer victory.

Record: 2-1

Record in 2020-21: 10-9 (4-7 CAA)

Head Coach: Mike Schrage (3rd season)

Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

GAME NOTES:

• With the win against Pitt, Bob Huggins is now tied with Bob Knight for fifth place on the NCAA all-time Division I winningest coaches list. Huggins’ record now stands at 902-382 in his 40th season as a head coach. He needs one more win to tie Roy Williams for fourth place all-time.
• WVU forced 32 turnovers and blocked 11 shots against Pitt. The only other time a WVU team forced 32 or more turnovers and blocked 10 or more shots was against Prairie View on Nov. 18, 2007. WVU’s 32 forced turnovers tied for the eighth most in a game in school history.
• WVU is forcing its opponents to turn it over on 41.0 percent of their possessions, tops in the country.
• Kedrian Johnson leads the country in steals with 5.5 steals per contest

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUP:

West Virginia Mountaineers: Jalen Bridges, Isaiah Cottrell, Taz Sherman, Sean McNeil and Kedarian Johnson

Elon Phoenix: Michael Graham, Zac Ervin, Darius Burford, Torrence Watson and Hunter McIntosh

PREDICTION THAT WILL BE WRONG

West Virginia enters the Shriners Children’s Charleston Classic with a little momentum after a good showing against the Pitt Panthers in last Friday’s Backyard Brawl. Elon shouldn’t present much of a challenge for the Mountaineers, and a win tonight will set them up for a matchup with Ole Miss or Marquette tomorrow night.

I’m personally watching for Malik Curry to start getting more minutes off the bench, as he looked to be the best all-around point guard on the team last week. He’s currently averaging six points per game, but I expect that to grow exponentially before we get into conference play on New Year’s Day.

West Virginia 74, Elon 53

PREGAME READING & UPDATES

Follow along with us on Twitter @smokingmusket for running commentary.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION!

Find a warm, comfortable spot, grab a favorite beverage or threeve, and join in on the running commentary, random observations, silly images, gifs, snark, wit, bitches, complaints, moans, groans, cheers, celebration and jubilation in the comments section below.

And, as always...