West Virginia’s 2004-2005 men’s basketball team, which made it to the Elite Eight, will celebrate their 20th year anniversary this weekend on Friday night in a private reception and public recognition during the football game against Kansas on Saturday.
Under head coach John Beilein, the Mountaineers went 24-11 and finished eighth in the Big East with an 8-8 conference record. They were ranked once in the season, No. 21 in the first week of Jan. 2005.
In the NCAA tournament, WVU was the No. 7 seed in their region. They defeated No. 10 Creighton and upset No. 2 Wake Forest and No. 2 Texas Tech to advance to the Elite Eight.
West Virginia was bested by No. 4 Louisville 93-85 in overtime, falling short of the Final Four. Louisville was eliminated by Illinois in the Final Four, which eventually lost to North Carolina in the championship.
The Mountaineers’ top scorers that year were Tyrone Sally with 12.2 points per game, Mike Gansey with 12 ppg, and Kevin Pittsnogle with 11.9 ppg. On top of the 2004-2005 men’s basketball game, West Virginia will be honoring the eight members of the 2024 WVU Sports Hall of Fame Class on Saturday.
Photo Courtesy of WVU Athletics
