Erik Stevenson said it simply, “we’re in.”
In indeed the Mountaineers are, finishing the Big 12 schedule 7-11, while going 6-12 in Quad 1 games, 5-1 in Quad 2 games, and ending the year with 18 wins, while having a top-10 strength of schedule. There was a sense of doubt for the Mountaineers, but they are now firmly off the bubble and belong in the NCAA Tournament.
One week after West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins sent a message to the NCAA Selection Committee, saying his team didn’t have to win any more games, they won two, and still have at least one more to play.
“If we’re not in, I don’t know what to do. Who else we got to beat, we got to go play play [ESPN Bracketologist] Joe Lunardi 1-on-1.”
The Mountaineers no longer have to head to Kansas City for the Big 12 Tournament and win a game to secure their spot in the NCAA Tournament.
“It’s tough to be in a spot where you’re on the bubble,” Stevenson said. You’e like ‘oh we got to win this game,’ then you don’t win the game. Then you’re like ‘oh you got to win the next two games,” and then you win the next two games. You’re always saying, ‘oh we got to do this, we got to do that.'”
Things looked up in the air for West Virginia’s NCAA Tournament chances just 14 days ago when the Mountaineers suffered a home loss to Texas Tech. Since then, a 3-1 finish to the regular season, and a two-point loss to Kansas on the road.
“We had to win the Texas Tech game at home and we didn’t, so we technically didn’t have to,” Stevenson said. “Went and stole [Iowa State] on the road, played great at Kansas, came up a little short, came here and finished the regular season with a win. When you’re in the Big 12 the magic number is 18 to my knowledge. We got 18, and hopefully we get 19, 20, 21.”
Kansas State head coach Jerome Tang had a similar sentiment to Stevenson’s. Tang suggested with the strength of the Big 12 he believes anyone in the conference can win in March.
“I know we (both) wanted to win the game. (For WVU) not only because it’s senior night, but because people are
saying they’re on the bubble,” Tang said. “That’s everybody outside of the Big 12 who says there’s a Big 12 team on the
bubble, because any team in our league is an NCAA Tournament team and can win games in the NCAA
Tournament. There’s nothing like it.”
Tang’s Wildcats finished at 11-7 in the Big 12 in his first season as their head coach, while at least seven of the 10 teams in the Big 12 are expected to make it to the NCAA Tournament.
“Unfortunately, we beat each other up. I’m not positive, but I think they (West Virginia) had the top strength-of-schedule, non-conference wise. Pittsburgh is tied for first in the ACC, and they beat them by 30,” Tang said.
Now the Mountaineers will wait. A week from tomorrow is Selection Sunday and WVU will hear their name called.
Lunardi, the famed bracketologist who Stevenson mentioned heard the message WVU sent in their 89-81 win over No. 11 Kansas State. Lunardi took West Virginia off his ‘bubble’ where the Mountaineers were considered a ‘last four bye’.
