MORGANTOWN -
Bob Huggins isn't looking for ways to avoid the 7-foot
center in his gym Monday night, but rather focusing on how to best use his own
big man to combat him.
"We're going to try to get Deniz [Kilicli] not to throw the
grenade and maybe go a little stronger at the rim," the WVU head coach said
Sunday with a smirk.
It will be Kilicli's job to handle Akron's Zeke Marshall at
both ends of the court and the game plan is going to require him to utilize
parts of his game that hardly even existed in the past.
The grenade Huggins refers to is Kilicli's hook shot, which
for two seasons was his bread and butter. So far through four games, he hasn't
been hitting that once unstoppable attempt with any sort of consistency.
In its place, though, he's shown to be a stronger force on
the inside and has improved his rebounding to an extent that may finally please
his head coach.
"I figure something out, the other doesn't go, you know?"
Kilicli says with a hint of a smile.
He and his teammates aren't concerned that the grenade isn't
falling just yet. That will come, he's sure. When it does, Huggins is hopeful
that the improvements he's made in other areas will make him a far more
imposing player on the court.
"Usually it was you flip a coin to see what Deniz was going
to show up that day," Huggins says of Kilicli's first two seasons. "He's been
great. He's fun to coach now because he listens and he tries to do what you ask
him to do. He's gotten so much better defensively and he's rebounding the ball
so much better."
The numbers back Huggins up. Through four games, the junior
forward has averages 7.5 rebounds per game, significantly better than the four
he pulled in each outing as a sophomore.
None of the teams WVU has faced to this point are
world-beaters in any sense, and the next few opponents will certainly challenge
the Turkey native more than he's been challenged this season. Kilicli believes
he's ready for what's coming his way and it all starts with the changes he's
made physically since last year ended.
"With rebounding and everything, it's all about getting in
shape and putting your mind into getting rebounds," he says. "You can't do it
just putting your head into it. You can't do it like that because before when I
was a sophomore, I really wanted to rebound. It's not that I didn't want to, I
just couldn't. Now, it is way easier to rebound because I can move better than
what I did and I'm way quicker."
A full summer in the weight room contributed to the physical
changes Kilicli has made, but buying into what his coach has been telling him
is also a major part of the transformation.
"I'm talented," Kilicli joked when asked how he's improved
on the interior, before giving a more serious account of the work that went
into it.
"The whole summer, I ran my ass off and then I worked on my
shots and I did work on my shot, but it's not going in right now," he
explained. "It's going to click one day. Right now, I'm just trying to get in a
rhythm on offense."
Kevin Jones says the changes haven't only been physical.
Kilicli's approach to practice and to the intricate details of everyone's
contribution on game day has turned him into a better teammate on the court.
"You can just see he's listening more and he's really into
the games," says Jones. "Before, he was more about scoring than anything and
now he's buying into the whole team defense concept and rebounding concept and
it's been working out well for him and we've been playing better as a result of
that. Anytime he brings his energy, it's a good thing."
Kilicli may only be a junior, but he's being counted on to
help guide a young team that still has plenty of growing to do. In the past, he
hasn't been vocal to the extent he is now. Early in the season, you can see
Kilicli barking out orders and putting his teammates in the right place if they
happen to wander.
That dimension of his game is also something new for the
Mountaineers.
"Last year it wasn't my role. I didn't have a leader role,"
says Kilicli. "I was the younger guy so I was kind of just doing whatever I was
doing. Right now I can't do that. I've got to take care of the family. That's
how we are – me and Truck and KJ, we have to take care of the kids."
Huggins seems happier with Kilicli and the work he's put in
and the 6-foot-9 forward admits that pleasing his head coach certainly makes
the days go by more smoothly.
"Oh, it makes it so much better," he says. "We watched the
Kent State tape and it was a hell film session, but because I got 15 rebounds
he didn't really say anything.
A hell film session is a sign of a loss and Kilicli doesn't
want any part in more of those anytime soon. With a tough non-conference
stretch set to begin Monday night in Morgantown, he'll be counted on to prove
just how much his hard work over the past few months can pay off.
His first task is a 7-foot shot-blocker.
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