WVU Beat the NBA Draft’s Top Two Picks in Ross Hodge’s First Year

Year one was full of ups and downs for Ross Hodge at West Virginia, which was to be expected given that he was the program's fourth head coach in as many years and had to flip the entire roster in just a couple of months.

Well before he and the Mountaineers ended their 2025-26 campaign with a win over the Oklahoma Sooners in the College Basketball Crown championship, they collected a pair of impressive wins over Kansas and BYU, which rostered what ended up being the first two picks of the 2026 NBA Draft in AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson.

Taking down Peterson and the Jayhawks

Jan 10, 2026; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Darryn Peterson (22) celebrates after a three point basket during the second half against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Hope Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images | Ben Queen-Imagn Images

Peterson got going early, hitting 5/11 from the field in the first half, but things changed drastically in the second half. Ross Hodge and his staff emphasized smothering him on defense, and it paid off, holding him to just a 1/6 performance in the final 20 minutes. His rhythm was disrupted a little bit also by checking out of the game every few minutes, which was something he did throughout the majority of the season. The Mountaineers outscored the Jayhawks 47-32 in the second half, going on to win by an 86-75 score.

Beating Dybantsa and the Cougars

This one was eerily similar to the game against Darryn Peterson and Kansas, except the performances came in the reverse order. WVU had a good game plan coming out against Dybantsa, limiting him to a measly four points on just four attempts in the first half. They did a wonderful job of playing airtight defense and forcing the ball out of his hands. But as good players do, he battled through it and started finding answers, putting a scare into the Mountaineers in the second half, where he shot 6/11 from the field. It wasn't enough, though, as West Virginia would hold on to win, 79-71.

Dybantsa's big night in the Big 12 tournament

Mar 11, 2026; Kansas City, MO, USA; BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa (3) drives around West Virginia Mountaineers forward Brenen Lorient (0) during the second half at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

The second matchup against BYU came in the Big 12 Conference tournament, and this time, Dybantsa had no issues against West Virginia, notching 27 points on 11/24 shooting to go along with seven rebounds. WVU played poorly in every facet of the game that day, but particularly on the offensive end, where they made just 38% of their shots.

Hodge has a bright future in Morgantown

West Virginia University head coach Ross Hodge | Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

Yeah, he lost one of the two matchups that featured Dybantsa, but in the win in Morgantown, he helped his team do a good job of slowing him down right out of the chute. With all due respect to last year's roster, it's incredible that he was able to pick up wins over two of the best players in all of college basketball. Just imagine the types of things he'll be able to accomplish with higher-end talent and more depth next season and into the future.

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