SAN DIEGO — Sagaba Konate is built like a defensive end with pogo-stick hops. Adjin Penava is built like a pogo stick.
West Virginia-Marshall, for all the mountain marbles in the NCAA tournament’s second round, could hinge upon the performances of their elite shot-blockers.
Konate, WVU’s 6-foot-8 sophomore, provides brawn and bounce, pinning shots with two-handed certainty and forming a wall around the basket. His 3.29 blocks per game rank third in the country.
The spindly Penava, with only 214 pounds spread across his 6-9 frame, actually tops the nation at 4.03 per game.