We’ve an odd occasion tonight. There are sugar plums in the air — and ugly sweaters all over the Coliseum — and West Virginia is playing a home game hours before it breaks for the holidays. That’s … that’s dangerous, and Eastern Kentucky is no soup can, odd resume notwithstanding. (Aside: Played Kentucky closer than it played Marshall?)

The Mountaineers return to campus Dec. 26 and will practice that afternoon and then the next three days. On Dec. 29, they’ll fly to Virginia Tech and play the hard-to-read Hokies a day later.

WVU will then fly to Manhattan, Kan., after the game and spent two days on the ground before opening Big 12 play Jan. 2 against Kansas State. After that game, they fly to Fort Worth, Texas, and play TCU in its new on-campus arena Jan. 4.

That’s … that’s dangerous. The Mountaineers were wary in their planning.

“Honestly, I didn’t know what to do,” Huggins said. “We were going to come back [after the Virginia Tech game], but I got convinced by the rest of the crew it was probably better if we just went to Manhattan. It’s a long time to be gone, but I think the consensus, aside from me, was probably that we could concentrate better and get more done.

“I went with the consensus. That’s a great way of saying if it doesn’t work, it’s not my fault.”

It’s going to be a test. Huggins knows the break has the potential to be a trap for his players, and he’s going to beg them after this game to get a lot of gym time during the pause and make sure they run to keep their legs. The Hokies are feisty, and their coach is going to make sure they play hard. There are easier teams to play after a break, especially on the road.

Kansas State and TCU are two of the three-worst teams in the conference, so the Mountaineers catch a break there (Kansas State plays at home Dec. 29 and then plays host to WVU. TCU plays at Oklahoma State Jan. 2 and then plays host to the Mountaineers). But six days on the road after four days away from campus is going to show Huggins a lot one way or another. The task is tall enough that WVU is just bound to have one off performance in that stretch.

All of which makes tonight’s game more important. EKU is a good offensive outfit. Forwards Jarelle Reischel and Javontae Hawks are both in the top 14 nationally in total points. Reischel averages 19.8 points per game, Hawkins averages 17.8 and forward Nick Mayo averages 12.9. Each shoots better than 53 percent from the floor. Reischel is third nationally with 91 free throws made and Hawkins is sixth with 87 baskets. EKU is No. 16 in points per game (85.7), No. 12 in shooting percentage (50.3) and No. 9 in 3-point shooting percentage (42.7).

WVU’s defense guards the 3-point line better than anyone — or has played some of the worst 3-point shooting teams; take your pick — but it also allows a high shooting percentage. The true trick, though, is turnovers. The Mountaineers are again adept at creating them and thriving off of them, but they’re been pretty generous in handing them out, too. The Colonels are No. 17 in turnovers forced per game (16.77) and No. 8 in total steals (106).

When Huggins reaches into his stocking tonight, he know what he wants to find, because he says as far as bal security goes, “we’ve taken being terrible to a new level.”

“We make passes when there’s nobody really guarding the ball or guarding the guy we’re throwing it to and we still throw it away,” Huggins said. “I think that’s the one glaring thing we’ve got to fix. Over the years here, we’ve been pretty good with it. There were years here if we had 10, that was a bunch. Now, 10 I’d be happy with. Actually, I’d be elated with 10. We’ve just got to do a better job with ball security.”

We’re secure in the post.