Predicting Each of West Virginia's Final Nine Games of the Season

At the halfway point of league play, West Virginia has a 5-4 record that features one quality win (Kansas), one bad loss (Baylor), and three losses to top 10 teams on the road (Iowa State, Houston, and Arizona).

What will happen in the back half of the schedule? Can they win enough games to get on the NCAA Tournament bubble? My game-by-game predictions (for now).

2/5 at Cincinnati - Lose (14-9, 5-5)

The Bearcats are 3-0 at home in Big 12 play, and that includes a nine-point win over No. 2 Iowa State. They're a tough customer at home, West Virginia hasn't played well on the road, and Cincy's bigs will be prepared to have a better performance this time around.

2/8 vs. Texas Tech - Lose (14-10, 5-6)

I almost did it. I nearly called for the upset. I just can't get there, though. Texas Tech is an elite team and has arguably the best player in the league in JT Toppin, who I don't see West Virginia having an answer for.

2/14 at UCF - Lose (14-11, 5-7)

The Knights are much better than I or anyone anticipated. They, too, have played extremely well at home, playing a tight game against No. 1 Arizona and most recently, upsetting Texas Tech. They shoot the lights out, hitting on 48% of their shots and 38% from downtown. Not enough firepower on the road for the Mountaineers here.

2/18 vs. Utah - Win (15-11, 6-7)

This feels like it could play out just like the Kansas State game did — UGLY! In this situation, you would have WVU entering this game on a three-game slide, hosting one of the worst teams in the conference. I would be worried about the mindset and energy of my team in this one if I were Ross Hodge.

2/21 at TCU - Lose (15-12, 6-8)

Fort Worth has been a house of horrors for this team lately. They've lost four straight at TCU and six of the last seven. I do see this as a winnable game, but I'll go with the Frogs.

2/24 at Oklahoma State - Win (16-12, 7-8)

I don't see West Virginia getting swept on this two-game roadtrip, so I'll take them to win this one. The Cowboys have lost by 15 to Baylor at home and beat Kansas State by just a single point. They will have to have an efficient night to keep pace with the Pokes' offense, but maybe this is the night BOTH Treysen Eaglestaff and Honor Huff light it up.

2/28 vs. BYU - Lose (16-13, 7-9)

To be completely transparent, I have no Earthly idea what West Virginia's gameplan will be against AJ Dynbasta. He's going to be one of the toughest covers they've had all season long. This one, even at home, could get ugly.

3/3 at Kansas State - Win (17-13, 8-9)

It's not easy to sweep any team in this league, so this won't be a gimme. That said, West Virginia played one of its worst games of the season against them and still found a way to come out on top. A cleaner performance should lead to another win over Jerome Tang's squad.

3/6 vs. UCF - Win (18-13, 9-9)

As I just mentioned, beating a time twice is tough to do. The Mountaineers have been great inside Hope Coliseum with the exception of the past two games, one of which they still won. Ross Hodge and Co. will finish out the regular season with a quality win over the Knights, bringing them to a .500 mark in league play.