Here’s what we know for sure about Stephen F. Austin:

1. Will wear purple Friday, and West Virginia is 6-0 against purple teams this season

2. Hasn’t lost since Dec. 29, and that was a defeat snatched from the jaws of victory at UAB

3. Only lost five times, all in road/neutral games, but those five losses … hmmm: at Baylor (No. 25 RPI) by 42, at Northern Iowa (No. 70) by 10, vs. Tulane (No. 271) by one, at Arizona State (No. 99) by seven and at UAB (No. 83) by 10.

4. Well-rounded, with a signature offense (spread) and defense (pressure), and ranks in the top 21 nationally in scoring offense (No. 21 80.7), scoring defense (No. 14, 63.2), scoring margin (No. 1, plus-17.6) and field-goal percentage (No. 18, 48.4).

5. More often than not had the best player on the floor.

What we don’t know? Well, there’s a lot, because SFA is a bit off the radar, recent success notwithstanding, but this is where the fun begins.

The Lumberjacks — women’s teams are the Ladyjacks, which is awesome — are very good defensively. WVU is No. 2 nationally in forced turnovers per game. Take a guess who’s No. 1 with 18.63 per game.

The Mountaineers are No. 13 in defensive efficiency. SFA is No. 8, and defensive efficiency is a valid measurement given the pace these defenses encourage and create.

Both teams are going to press. It’s not useful to compare the two, and Bob Huggins wasn’t pressing when he was at Kansas State and SFA coach Brad Underwood was his assistant. Underwood, though, likes to press. But he’ll play half-court man-to-man and have his players pressure the ball, the cuts, the movements, the screens, the pass and the catch. Sometimes it’s a 1-2-2 or even a 1-3-1 zone. The Lumberjacks are good at keeping teams out of their offenses and forcing the opponent to back out and work off a ball screen.

But SFA will press, too. Sometimes it’s man-to-man and sometimes it’s 1-2-1-1. Teams have had a hard time staying out of trouble and/or getting into offense when they see the 1-2-1-1, and a lot of turnovers happen on the sideline or when making a pass out of that spot. WVU will have a plan for both, but the key is to not invite the sideline as an extra defender. It’s an aggressive group that, like the Mountaineers, won’t relent and commits a foul on 26.7 percent of its defensive plays. That ranks No. 310 nationally. There are 351 teams.

Walkup is a great defender, and he’s been an all-defense pick three times in the Southland. Trey Pinkney is a nuisance on the ball and running down opponents. He averages 1.5 steals per game and did it with consistency. He never had more than four in a game and had at least one in all but five games. The defenders use their length, suddenness and experience to get into passing lanes, and they’ve been able to switch against movement and bog down possessions.

WVU’s problems with turnovers are well-documented, and a rash Friday will be trouble, because SFA is so good offensively.

Sticking with the defense, it’s important for the Lumberjacks to keep the ball away from the rim. They have one rim protector — and T.J. Hollyfield is bouncy — and they don’t get a lot of defensive rebounds. They’re middle-of-the-pack in rebounding, getting 72.8 percent of the defensive rebounds and letting opponents get 27.2 percent of the offensive rebounds. WVU makes its living in those categories.

The Mountaineers don’t finish around the basket very well, but SFA doesn’t block a lot of shots — unblocked 2-point shots go in 54.6 percent of the time, which ranks No. 224 — and opponents get assists on a little more than 52 percent of their baskets.

Offensively, SFA is a treat. The Lumberjacks will spread you out and cut and pass and cut and pass until they screens and fade. They dart inside and they shoot from the outside, where the leader is Demetrious Floyd and an odd-looking though effective shot that falls 42.9 percent of the time. They can hit you fast and they can be patient and ask you to guard for 30 seconds. And they can score.

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SFA plays up high and out wide with a wing on either side and a “center” stepping forward. It creates space for all the cuts and movement, and WVU has to be careful not to overplay and give up back-cuts, because WVU’s bigs are going to spend a lot of time away from the basket.

When Underwood isn’t calling a play — and he has a few he really likes; watch for dribble handoffs and the double fake which starts a play that ends with a back-cut on the baseline … it’s magic — his two guards trigger the offense, and you have to watch the first pass. The first passer makes the first cut, and SFA throws that pass all the time for quick shots.

If that isn’t open, the cutter runs through and a second cutter goes to the lane and tries to post up for an over-the-top entry and another easy score. Other times, the second man will set a screen, and a teammate curls around for a lob.

A lot of this is based on knowing your teammates and knowing how to play basketball together against defenses. WVU’s pressure, wherever it’s applied on the court, is designed to take offenses out of their practice mentality, but the Mountaineers will have to switch a lot and be sound with help defense.

If they do go away from just running offense, the Lumberjacks can call and run plays, and they’re designed to put defenders in conflict and force them to make a decision. Check this out. There’s a lot going on there, and a defense has to be alert of all its surroundings.

What’s going to be interesting is how officials call inevitable contact in the lane and if or how SFA gets some whistles. WVU fouls a lot — 23.3 per game, which ranks No. 344 –but the Lumberjacks get only 18.5 percent of their points at the free-throw line, which ranks No. 276. SFA gets a lot of open shots — unblocked 2-point shots go in 59.3 percent of the time, even without a back-to-the-basket player — and the Mountaineers are going to do all they can to prevent that.

I could go on and on about the offense, because it really is fun to watch. I’ll leave you instead with this clip, which explains it much better than I can.