Brenen Lorient Could Make WVU a Legitimate Big 12 Title Contender

The Mountaineers are one more piece of good news away from being a serious threat in the Big 12.

WVU Athletics Communications

Ross Hodge did a tremendous job of revamping his roster through the transfer portal this offseason, landing several players who have logged meaningful minutes at the highest level of college basketball, while also bringing in a top-15 high school class, headlined by Miles Sadler.

This team was already pretty good, and now, they are planning to have Brenen Lorient back in the fold.

Lorient announced on Wednesday that he intends to play a fifth year at West Virginia after sorting through his options, although he is still waiting for word on his eligibility from the courts. The class-wide preliminary injunction issued by Colorado Judge Charlotte Sweeney gives Lorient and others in the 2022 class a fifth year of eligibility, but that ruling is being appealed to the Tenth Circuit.

Lorient and fellow WVU forward Javan Buchanan filed suit against the NCAA in West Virginia, and if the judge presiding over that case sides with the Mountaineer forwards, both will be eligible.

Lorient completely changes expectations for WVU in 2026-27

WVU Athletics Communications

If "B-Lo" is given the green light, West Virginia has the talent (and depth) to contend for the Big 12 title this season. Don't take that as though they are the favorite to win the league. Houston still exists. Kansas is always going to be in the mix. Arizona, BYU, and Texas Tech will be there. And Baylor will bounce back. Plus, there's always one or two surprise teams that enter the conversation.

Lorient would complete this lineup perfectly. Without him, the Mountaineers don't really have a versatile four-man who can switch 1-5 defensively and stretch the floor on the offensive end. Seydou Traore could play there and did during his time at Utah, but he's not nearly as long as Lorient and isn't as reliable from three. He shot 33% last year from deep, but is a career 26% shooter from range. Boise State transfer Javan Buchanan is a versatile player, just in a different way. He doesn't have the same type of athleticism as Lorient.

Projected depth chart with Lorient

PG: Miles Sadler, Martin Somerville, Amir Jenkins

SG: Finley Bizjack, Keonte Greybear, MJ Feenane

SF: Joson Sanon, Seydou Traore, Evans Barning Jr., Max Olejasz

PF: Brenen Lorient, Javan Buchanan

C: Mouhamed Sylla, Amadou Seini, Aliou Dioum

Typically, Hodge will settle in with an eight-man rotation, but that could be expanded this season with how deep this team is. You could make the case that 10 or 11 guys could see minutes on a regular basis.

A Sadler-Bizjack-Sanon-Lorient-Sylla lineup is going to be incredibly difficult to gameplan for. All five can score it. Unlike last year, opposing coaches won't have the luxury of being able to key in on one guy as they did with Honor Huff. They have to respect all five.