What 20 Games Have Really Taught Us About West Virginia and Its True Ceiling

An evaluation of West Virginia basketball through the first twenty games of the season.

Jan 24, 2026; Tucson, Arizona, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers head coach Ross Hodge watches during the first half of the game against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

Following Saturday's blowout loss to No. 1 Arizona, West Virginia is officially over a third of the way through its Big 12 schedule. They'll return to Morgantown this week for a pair of home contests against Kansas State and Baylor before hitting the road for the second matchup against Cincinnati.

What exactly do I think about this team through the first 20 games? My evaluation...

Good defense, not elite

Ross Hodge is known for his defensive prowess. That's why Wren Baker hired him. To win in the Big 12, you have to be a strong defensive team. Just comb through the last decade or so of the teams that have won the league or were right there in the mix. They play elite defense.

This group has been really good at times, but hasn't played many games where they've been dialed in on that end for forty minutes or close to it. They either have to overcome a poor start or fade late. Seeing them in the middle of the pack of the Big 12 makes sense, considering the defense is far from abysmal, yet also far from elite. I fully expect them to reach that level in the next year or two when Hodge has more homegrown talent in the building.

Physicality is a major issue, as expected

This was the one area I kept bringing up in the preseason. It wasn't just because they had just one true center on the roster. It was because those who make up the frontcourt didn't have a past of being physical players, and so far, that evaluation has been spot-on. The best teams in this league will get after you on the interior while also attacking with guards who like to put pressure on the rim.

WVU doesn't have a defensive presence at the rim, and offensively, they really struggle to get to the cup, aside from Chance Moore, of course. If Brenen Lorient and Treysen Eaglestaff can be more effective close to the basket, which I believe they can, it will open up some new opportunities for them offensively that they've yet to tap into.

Not enough scoring depth

Honor Huff shouldered the load for the majority of the first twenty games before Colorado came up with the blueprint to slow him down. Arizona State and Arizona copied that gameplan and did a good job of keeping him in check. Treysen Eaglestaff struggled to find his shot for much of the season, but has emerged as the go-to option since Huff has cooled off.

Having two dynamic scorers is nice and all, but at some point, you need both of them to play well on the same night against a quality opponent. Beyond those two, Ross Hodge can't really rely on someone else to put up a big night offensively. Sure, Brenen Lorient has shown to be capable, and Chance Moore could as well if he gets to the cup enough, but it's not something you can exactly count on.

Lacking a quality wins, but just one bad loss

Everyone would like to have those games against Clemson and Ohio State back. I made a bigger deal of it than most at the time, simply realizing that they were giving themselves very little wiggle room entering Big 12 play. They can't afford to drop many games that they are expected to win.

As far out as WVU seems from the NCAA Tournament, they're still in a good spot. They'll have two more opportunities for signature wins, both of which will be at home this time — vs. Texas Tech and BYU. The resume isn't in terrible shape. It just needs to avoid further disappointments and a couple more quality wins, even if it doesn't come against the two aforementioned contenders.

Bubble team at best

Don't take this as West Virginia won't make the dance. Just that if they do, they'll sneak in as one of the last handful of teams and probably be a one-and-done or win a play-in game before getting eliminated. They lack the depth and the scoring consistency for me to believe they can make any sort of deep run. The reality of it is, WVU hasn't played its best ball yet, so it's difficult to expect that everything will click in time for that to happen. As Ross Hodge has stated many times, this group will probably run out of time.

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