MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — The word Derek Culver used was “tough,” when describing this sixth-ranked West Virginia men’s basketball team.
After a moment of thought, “I don’t want to give you the speech that every team gives when they say they’re tough,” Culver said.
He didn’t have to.
After a season with one setback after another, whether it was living a new lifestyle through the COVID-19 pandemic, watching as promising freshman Isaiah Cottrell went down for the season with a torn Achilles tendon or going through the adjustments that came after Oscar Tshiebwe announced he was transferring in December, these Mountaineers have proved to be just that.
“You guys have seen that we lost big pieces,” Culver continued. “We kept on moving as if we didn’t lose any pieces. Hats off to my teammates and coaches, because they were really good at figuring things out on the fly.”
Through all of that, WVU’s 76-67 victory against TCU on Thursday night now has the Mountaineers in position to play for second place in the Big 12.
That may actually mean more than what it sounds, because the Big 12 this season has been, without a doubt, THE best conference in America.
Normally, no one wants to brag about finishing second.
This season, after the gauntlet of top 20 teams the Big 12 threw at each other every game, finishing second behind a Baylor team that nearly went undefeated is quite an accomplishment.
“When we went through our roster transformation, basically everyone kind of counted us out,” said WVU forward Jalen Bridges, who had a career night with 22 points and 12 rebounds. “We took that as, let’s show everybody that we can be better that what people are saying we’re going to be. We were still that West Virginia team that had Final Four potential, no matter who was here. We took that to heart and came out every game and tried to fight as much as possible.”
The Mountaineers will need a victory Saturday against Oklahoma State to secure the No. 2 seed in next week’s Big 12 tournament.
A loss drops WVU to third, maybe fourth, depending on how Texas finishes.
But, go back to Jan. 1 for a moment.
Tshiebwe had just left town. Cottrell was out for the season. WVU’s defense wasn’t very good and the Mountaineers were about to undergo an offensive transformation that asked seldom-used Bridges to suddenly become a productive starter.
Back then, you would have gladly accepted a fourth-place finish in the Big 12, no questions asked.
That’s why, with this team, possibly finishing second is a major deal.
That’s why, when Culver uses the word “tough” to describe his team, you understand he’s not just throwing out some cliche.
“I thought we could be really good,” Huggins said. “This is not a shot at (Tshiebwe), but we’re better off with Jalen, because it isolates Derek down there and it was so crowded in the lane.
“I think Isaiah’s deal really hurt us. He’s a skilled guy. They would have had to guard him when he popped out. Isaiah was the loss for us.”
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