Nette Wortgeplänkel » ourselves; hes still a pest, Babcock said. Hes g

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- With a big lead in the season opener, West Virginia coach Bob Huggins got a chance to get his youngest players some valuable experience.Nathan Adrian scored 13 points and No. 20 West Virginia cruised past Mount St. Marys 87-59 on Friday night to win its fourth straight opener.Sagaba Konate had 11 points and six rebounds in 12 minutes during a matchup of schools both nicknamed the Mountaineers. He was one of five West Virginia freshmen to play.I thought some were pretty good and some werent very good, Huggins said. I thought Sags played well and was active. Weve just got to throw him in there and help him get his feet wet, but some of our older guys werent very good. Theyve got to be a whole lot better for us.Jevon Carter had 10 points in 27 minutes for West Virginia. Tarik Phillip and Brandon Watkins each scored nine, and Huggins put his teams depth on display by giving at least 10 minutes of time to 11 players.Another freshman who had an impressive debut was Lamont West, with seven points and eight rebounds. Konate, however, expected more of himself.Not really satisfied with my first game, the forward said. We need to improve on the defense side and with our press. We need to roll to the ball better.West Virginia scored the first seven points and led by as many as 21 in the first half.Greg Alexander led Mount St. Marys with 15 points. Elijah Long had 14 and Miles Wilson scored 11.Well, you know, were always big believers in challenging our team, coach Jamion Christian said. I was just talking to our team about it in the locker room there and (if) we learn from these experiences along the way, were going to be right where we need to be at.You know, were not in the Big 12. So, everything for us in our league is going to be measured at the end of the season. Weve always done a great job at getting better at it. Well use this experience here and this road trip to really continue to improve.BIG PICTUREMount St. Marys: Coming off a 13-19 season, the Mountaineers open with nine road games before returning to play at home in Emmitsburg, Maryland, on Dec. 7. The trip includes games at No. 24 Iowa State, Minnesota, George Mason, Michigan and Arkansas.West Virginia: Coming off a 26-9 record last season and an early exit from the NCAA Tournament, the Mountaineers have two more home games before playing in the NIT Season Tip-Off in Brooklyn on Thanksgiving weekend.PRESS VIRGINIAWest Virginias full-court press helped generate 26 points off 21 turnovers.Mount St. Marys, third in the country in creating turnovers last season, scored 11 points off 13 turnovers.UP NEXTMount St. Marys plays at Iowa State on Monday.West Virginia hosts Mississippi Valley State on Monday. 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Martins Karsums played only six games for the Boston Bruins during the 2008-09 season, but his brief presence set in motion one of the organizations most important acquisitions of the past decade. ??After the Bruins selected him as the 64th pick in the 2004 draft, Karsums went on to log 24 games in the NHL (the other 18 came with the?Tampa Bay Lightning). Before turning pro, Karsums was with the Moncton Wildcats, and the Bruins kept a close eye on his development. Every time the scouts returned with reports, however, they raved about Karsums teammate, Brad Marchand. ??Guys kept coming back saying, Check this kid out. Hes really skilled and ultracompetitive for a smaller player, said one former Bruins hockey operations staffer. ? ??Jeff Gorton, the current?New York Rangers?general manager, was then working for the Bruins as assistant GM. He served as interim GM during the 2006 draft in Vancouver. Boston selected Phil Kessel in the first round (fifth overall), and its second-round selections were Yuri Alexandrov (37th overall) and Milan Lucic (50th). The Bruins did not have a pick in the third round, but Gorton, who has a keen eye for young talent, had targeted Marchand. ??A couple of things were working against Bostons chances of landing Marchand in the third round. 1: The New York Islanders had two picks in the beginning of the third round, and the team had just hired Marchands junior coach, Ted Nolan, as its new bench boss. 2: The Bruins had to surrender their third-round pick to the Ottawa Senators for hiring Peter Chiarelli to serve as Bostons new GM, beginning in July 2006. ??It didnt look great for us to be able to get [Marchand], Gorton told ESPN.com via text. ? ??Gorton knew Marchand was the type of player the Bruins hadnt had in a while -- someone who could one day become a driving force behind the teams success. ?On draft day, Gorton traded the Bruins two fourth-round picks for the Islanders third-round selection. Boston then selected Marchand as the 71st overall pick -- and that choice has proved crucial for the organization. Many hockey personnel wondered that day why the Islanders didnt select Marchand 70th overall and instead chose Robin Figren. Either way, the hockey operations staff at Bostons draft table was thrilled the Bruins had landed Marchand. ??Id be lying to say we knew he was going to be this good. Otherwise we should have taken him a lot sooner, Gorton said recently. ? ? ?In Marchand the Bruins acquired a player with skill, skating ability, hockey IQ, character and competitiveness. Now in his eighth NHL season, the 28-year-old forward has reached new levels in all of those categories, especially in terms of his competitive intensity. ? ??Its pretty impressive the way hes improved, said Bruins alternate captain and longtime linemate Patrice Bergeron. Ive always thought he was an amazing player to play with. The way hes handled himself on the ice night in and night out -- hes always been first on pucks, working hard, competing and all that -- I just think hes improved his game from one year to another. He got 37 goals last year and it wasnt a fluke. Obviously were seeing that right now. Its great to see. ? ?This season, Marchand has three goals and seven assists for 10 points in eight games. He has carried over his success from the World Cup of Hockey, where he helped lead Team Canada to a championship with five goals and three assists for eight points in six games. The decision by Team Canada and coach Mike Babcock to give Marchand a roster spot and put him on the top line, along with Sidney Crosby and Bergeron, was based on that competitiveness.dddddddddddd ? ?Crosby, widely considered the best player in the world, said he was confident Marchand would have a positive impact both on and off the ice for Team Canada.Crosby also knew even before he hoisted the Stanley Cup with the?Pittsburgh Penguins?in June that Bergeron and Marchand would be his World Cup linemates. So Crosby invited both of them to work out for a week during the summer in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Because Marchand is a fellow Nova Scotian, he skated a bit longer with Crosby during the offseason. That ice time was invaluable, helping build chemistry among the trio -- and it showed once the puck dropped at the World Cup. ?It also helped that Bergeron and Marchand have been linemates in Boston since the Bruins won the Stanley Cup in 2011. Before the World Cup, some wondered how Marchands presence would be received with Team Canada. Hes had a reputation as an agitator who crosses the line at times. ??Marchand has been suspended three times for a total of 10 games. But he also has the reputation of being a good teammate. Hes one of the first players on the ice for practice and one of the last ones to leave. He works his tail off during practice, and that translates during games. He is strong. He is fast. Hes not easily knocked off his skates. Hes basically one of those players you love to have on your team but hate to play against. ??His Team Canada teammates learned that firsthand during the World Cup. ??Hes really starting to shed that reputation, and hes earning a lot of respect from [the] people watching, but also people in that dressing room, [who] are discovering how good a person he really is -- things weve known for a long time in Boston, Bruins coach Claude Julien said during the tournament. ?Marchand understands that hell never completely shed the pest label. Thats the reputation Ive had for a while and people may see me as a little better player now, but that reputation will probably never leave, which is fine, he said recently. I dont care either way, but its nice to be recognized as maybe a little bit better hockey player than people might have thought.After the World Cup culminated with Team Canadas victory, Babcock said Marchand will continue to be Marchand. ??Lets not kid ourselves; hes still a pest, Babcock said. Hes going to be a pest. But hes a pest with elite speed and elite skill and a good penalty killer. ???Marchand has won a Stanley Cup. He won a World Championship with Canada in May. And he was a major contributor for Canadas World Cup victory. Marchand has become a complete player. If the NHL decides to participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics, No. 63 should be on that roster. ???During the World Cup, the Bruins announced that they had signed Marchand to an eight-year contract extension worth $49 million. It should keep him in Boston for the remainder of his career. ? ??Im extremely excited, he said. That was always a dream of mine to remain [in Boston] and be part of this team for a long time, and I have that opportunity now. Im very fortunate. Im very proud and excited about that, but I still have to do my job the next number of years and make sure they keep me around. ??? ?No doubt he will continue to hear boos and insults from opposing fans, but Marchand has finally earned a spot at the big-boy table in hockey. ' ' '