West Virginia basketball newcomers on campus

The West Virginia basketball program has officially started workouts and now all four new members of the 2020 basketball team are enrolled and have their jersey numbers assigned.

WVSports.com takes a final look at each of the players that have joined the Mountaineers hoops program this off-season to see how they will fit in with this year’s club and what numbers they are set to wear once the action does begin later this year.

The highest rated prospect in the class is Huntington (W.Va.) forward Isaiah Cottrell and there is a lot to be excited about. Cottrell, 6-foot-9, 215-pounds, is slotted as the No. 87 prospect nationally and could fill several slots in the post as a versatile big man that has even expanded his skill set to the perimeter.

Cottrell averaged 18.9 points and 9.3 rebounds while earning player of the year honors in the state of West Virginia according to Max Preps after coming over from Nevada.

He is set to wear the number 13 and officially enrolled earlier in the summer.

Freshman forward Taj Thweatt is coming off a season where he was named The Press Boys Basketball Player of the Year for his efforts on the floor. The 6-foot-7, 195-pounder, is slotted more as a wing with the ability to bounce around to different forward spots as needed.

Thweatt averaged 18 points and 7.3 rebounds during his senior season. His motor and athleticism should make him a natural fit with the forwards on the roster where he should slide in with Emmitt Matthews and Jalen Bridges to provide support. He will wear No. 24.

The only junior college prospect in the class is Kedrian Johnson. He is coming off a season where he accounted for 25.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists as one of the premier scorers as a combo-guard at that level of basketball. The 6-foot-4, 180-pounder, scored at all three levels connecting on 47-percent of his shots while hitting 84.1-percent of his free throws and 32-percent of his three-point attempts last season making him a priority target for the West Virginia coaches.

The plan is for Johnson to step in as a combo-guard with the ability to play either spot in the back-court adding to what the Mountaineers already have at that spot. He is set to wear No. 0 in Morgantown and is now officially enrolled after arriving later than his two freshmen counterparts.

The last member of the class is Seny Ndiaye and he is also the most raw of the three. At 6-foot-10, 225-pounds, Ndiaye is a rim running, natural shot blocker that excels on the defensive end of the floor.

He is coming off a season where he averaged 5 points, 6 rebounds and 3 blocks per contest but unlike the other additions to the class he is likely primed for a redshirt season as he further develops. One area where he is going to have to improve is with his strength as well as further developing on the offensive end of the floor.

That will almost assuredly be accomplished in a year away from the game where he can focus primarily on those aspects to be ready the following season considering the logjam in the post.

While he was originally set to spend a year at prep school, Ndiaye is now in Morgantown but has yet to be formally announced as enrolled by the school.

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