MORGANTOWN — Yes, West Virginia, there is still a realistic shot for the Mountaineers to make the men’s basketball NCAA tournament.
That much became clear following Wednesday’s 76-61 victory against Texas Tech, which ended a 12-game road losing streak in conference play.
“We actually had a chance for a few more, but we gave them away,” Huggins said. “Hopefully we’re learning.”
According to the metrics provided by the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings, the Mountaineers find themselves with solid footing for a bid to the NCAA tournament.
WVU improved from No. 29 to No. 24 in the NET after the win, and that ranking is based on its strength of schedule.
According to the NET, the Mountaineers (12-8, 2-6 Big 12) have played 11 Quad 1 games this season, which is at least one more than anyone else in the country.
WVU is 3-8 in those Quad 1 games this season and a combined 9-0 in Quad 2, 3, 4 games.
So, what exactly is a Quad 1 game?
The first thing to know is the site of the game is important.
A Quad 1 game is defined as a home game against a team in the top 30 of the NET, a neutral-court game against a team in the top 50 or a road game against a team in the top 75.
The next thing to know is all of it fluctuates until the end of the conference tournaments.
For example, playing Texas Tech on the road started out as a Quad 1 game for WVU, because the Red Raiders were ranked No. 73.
After losing, Texas Tech dropped to No. 77, making it a Quad 2 win for the Mountaineers.
If Texas Tech were to get back into the top 75, then the game becomes another Quad 1 game for WVU.
WVU’s road win at Pitt early in the season was thought to be ho-hum, but with the Panthers sudden emergence in ACC play — Pitt is No. 63 in the NET — that’s now become one of WVU’s three Quad 1 victories, even though the contest was played back in November. WVU’s other Quad 1 wins are against TCU and Florida.
As far as the remaining schedule, WVU has 11 regular-season games left. Saturday’s home game against No. 15 Auburn is technically a Quad 2 game, because the Tigers are ranked No. 33 in the NET, but could become a Quad 1 game if Auburn gets into the top 30.
Of the 11 games left, eight are against Quad 1 opponents and three will be Quad 2, according to the current rankings.
How WVU performs down the stretch will be the determining factor.
Simply playing good teams won’t be enough for the NCAA selection committee.
Last season, WVU led the country with 18 Quad 1 games, but it’s 16-17 overall record and 4-14 mark in the Big 12 still had the Mountaineers at No. 78 in the NET and out of consideration.
Currently at No. 24, it would be nearly impossible to see the selection committee skipping past WVU even with its current Big 12 record.
Except the selection committee isn’t making selections now with more than a month left in the season.
The magic question: How many wins would WVU need to stay in contention for an at-large berth?
If the Mountaineers were to secure at least one victory in the Big 12 tournament, a likely number appears to be seven, or 19 total wins.
A projected 19-14 record would likely keep WVU somewhere in the top 30.
As to getting there, Huggins said he believes his team, which began the season with nine new players, is starting to put things together.
“This portal thing and transfers and all of that, it takes a while to be able to put guys together,” Huggins said. “I think we’re starting to come together a little bit better. It takes more time than, obviously, what we anticipated and, I think, more time than what most people anticipated.”
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