West Virginia guard Kedrian Johnson is making a name for himself on the defensive end on the floor.

It’s not as if it hasn’t been mentioned, but somehow what he’s done on that end of the floor hasn’t been widely recognized enough with how he has smothered opposing guards.

The senior is the best on-ball defenders for the Mountaineers and his efforts were apparent in the win over UAB locking down Blazers guard Jordan Walker. The junior was 4-14 from the field in the second half of the West Virginia come from behind 65-59 win and 1-8 from three-point range.

Johnson had a lot to do with that.

“He’s longer so he could bother him a little bit with his length and he’s one of the few guys in the world as fast as he is,” head coach Bob Huggins said. “I thought for us it was a really key matchup.”

The numbers showcase that as well as the Mountaineers were at 0.93 points per possession while allowing only 0.64 points per possession with Johnson on the floor. That is a net gain of 0.29 over 100-possessions, while the contrast is 0.82 on the offensive end and allowing 1.00 or a loss of 0.18.

"We just try to emphasize getting stops," Johnson said.

That isn’t insignificant and not an accident.

Johnson played 26 minutes total and 16 of those came in the second half as he seized control of the point guard position after Malik Curry left with an ankle issue. His defense is one of the primary reasons that Huggins recruited Johnson and he hasn't disappointed.

"At this level it's all about knowing your role and being the best at what you bring to the table," Johnson said.

Johnson immediately made his presence known on the defensive end and the Blazers as a whole didn’t make a field goal over an almost eight-minute span late in the second half when the game was largely decided. The senior was active with two steals and a block as well.

“As the game wore on and we kept being on the short side of the scoreboard I think our guys knuckled down a little bit,” Huggins said.

It wasn’t just on the defensive end of things either as Johnson connected on 7-8 from the foul line in order to close things out finishing with 9 total points. He also dished out 4 of the Mountaineers total 6 assists finishing tied for the overall lead at +11 across his 26 minutes.

Johnson understands his role and is willing to play to a smothering degree. It’s just another tool that Huggins has in the box that makes up the 2021 hoops roster.

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