Ross Hodge is on his way to West Virginia, and he may bring a major tournament victory with him.
Hodge, the next head coach of WVU Men’s Basketball, rounds out his tenure with the North Texas this week, as he attempts to lead the Mean Green to an NIT championship.
The Mean Green take on UC Irvine on Tuesday in Indianapolis at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN in the semifinals. The game’s winner will challenge either Chattanooga or Loyola Chicago on Thursday at 9 p.m. ET.
North Texas failed to reach the NCAA Tournament this season after falling to lower seed UAB in the semifinals of the American Athletic Conference Championship. The Mean Green’s 27-8 overall record earned them an invite to the NIT, where they have since won three games.
Atin Wright, who played under former WVU head coach Darian DeVries at Drake last season, is Hodge’s leading scorer this season. The 6-foot-1 senior averaged 14.9 points per game this season and 12 points per game in the first three games of the NIT.
Through three games in the NIT, North Texas has yet to allow 65 points or more by opponents. The effort is in line with Hodge’s defensive coaching identity, which led the Mean Green to the third best scoring defense in the NCAA this season, allowing just 59.9 points per game on average.
Offensively, though, the Mean Green have done little to increase the scoring margin. North Texas won both of its last two games by two points, scoring 65 points on 25-for-57 shooting against Arkansas State and scoring 61 on 20-for-53 shooting against Oklahoma State.
With Dallas Region top seed SMU falling to Oklahoma State in the second round, North Texas has yet to play a higher seeded team in the NIT. UC Irvine will be the first, with the Anteaters taking the top seed in the Irvine Region.
