The One Thing That Will Determine if West Virginia is an NCAA Tournament Team

Defense has been the Mountaineers' calling card all year but has also been its Achilles heel at times.

West Virginia University guard Sencire Harris | Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

When West Virginia's defense is locked in, they have the ability to compete with anyone in the country. They've proven that by beating teams like Gonzaga, Arizona, Kansas, and Iowa State.

However, the greatest strength can also, at times, turn into its biggest enemy. There have been a handful of games where the Mountaineers are all out of sorts on that end of the floor from the opening tip, creating a big hole to climb out of, or fatigue sets in during the second half, allowing easy looks at the rim.

They play with an aggressive mindset but in certain matchups, they've been a little too opportunistic, resulting in sending the opponent to the free-throw line way more than Darian DeVries would like.

So, what is the root of the issue when the defense isn't playing up to its potential? DeVries gave his thoughts in Monday's press conference ahead of the TCU game.

West Virginia University head coach Darian DeVries | Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

“I think it’s been a variety of things at times. The other night, I thought we guarded Tech really well in the first 15 minutes of the game, and sometimes, it has as much to do with our offense as our defense, but in this particular case they got in transition and that hurt us. And then the second half, they really hurt us inside and in the interior. That was a Texas Tech strength of what they do.

"There’s been other games where maybe we put them at the free throw line too much or they get downhill and get into our paint. It’s been a combination of things but when our defense is good, typically we’ve been right where we need to be.”

The level of play on defense is going to be what makes or breaks the Mountaineers' NCAA Tournament chances. They may have a night here and there where shots fall more than usual, but it's not something they can rely on a nightly basis. What they can control is the effort and communication needed to make things challenging for the opponent.

MORE STORIES FROM WEST VIRGINIA ON SI

In the Gun Podcast: West Virginia Spring Football Preview

ESPN Bracketology Still Has West Virginia on the Right Side of the Bubble

ESPN BPI Gives Interesting Prediction for West Virginia vs. TCU

How to Watch & Listen to West Virginia vs. TCU