Photo by: Sarah Ramundt
Mountaineers Climb to No. 11 This Week
November 30, 2020 01:50 PM | Men's Basketball, Blog
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia jumped four spots to No. 11 in this week's Associated Press Top 25 Men's Basketball Poll after winning the Bad Boy Mowers Crossover Classic in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, last weekend.
WVU earned victories over South Dakota State, VCU and Western Kentucky to begin the season 3-0.
Difficult games are on the horizon, however, with a Wednesday night meeting against No. 1-ranked Gonzaga coming up in Indianapolis in the Jimmy V Classic.
West Virginia was a late entry into the tournament after veteran coach Bob Huggins saw on the ticker that COVID issues within the Tennessee program forced the Volunteers to suspend basketball operations and drop out of the tournament.
Huggins said he made a few phone calls to people he knew at ESPN and was able to get the Mountaineers into the tournament late last week after Youngstown State was forced to suspend basketball activities and was unable to make its Dec. 2 date in Morgantown.
Gonzaga (2-0) is a near unanimous No. 1 team this week after garnering 57 out of a possible 63 No. 1 votes. Big 12 member Baylor got the other six No. 1 votes and is No. 2.
The other Big 12 teams in this week's AP poll include Kansas at No. 7 and Texas Tech and Texas tied at No. 17.
The Zags, under veteran coach Mark Few, are off to an impressive start with double-digit victories over Kansas and Auburn.
Wednesday night's game will be West Virginia's fifth meeting against Gonzaga with the Zags claiming all four prior games, including a 61-58 thriller at the SAP Center in San Jose, California, in the 2017 NCAA Tournament.
The Mountaineers were unable to hold on to a three-point lead with 1:47 remaining. West Virginia also dropped an NCAA Tournament first-round game against Gonzaga at CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh.
On the horizon, following games against Georgetown and Robert Morris, is a Dec. 13 date against Richmond, which climbed into the polls at No. 19 following its 12-point win at Kentucky last weekend.
WVU earned victories over South Dakota State, VCU and Western Kentucky to begin the season 3-0.
Difficult games are on the horizon, however, with a Wednesday night meeting against No. 1-ranked Gonzaga coming up in Indianapolis in the Jimmy V Classic.
West Virginia was a late entry into the tournament after veteran coach Bob Huggins saw on the ticker that COVID issues within the Tennessee program forced the Volunteers to suspend basketball operations and drop out of the tournament.
Huggins said he made a few phone calls to people he knew at ESPN and was able to get the Mountaineers into the tournament late last week after Youngstown State was forced to suspend basketball activities and was unable to make its Dec. 2 date in Morgantown.
Gonzaga (2-0) is a near unanimous No. 1 team this week after garnering 57 out of a possible 63 No. 1 votes. Big 12 member Baylor got the other six No. 1 votes and is No. 2.
The other Big 12 teams in this week's AP poll include Kansas at No. 7 and Texas Tech and Texas tied at No. 17.
The Zags, under veteran coach Mark Few, are off to an impressive start with double-digit victories over Kansas and Auburn.
Wednesday night's game will be West Virginia's fifth meeting against Gonzaga with the Zags claiming all four prior games, including a 61-58 thriller at the SAP Center in San Jose, California, in the 2017 NCAA Tournament.
The Mountaineers were unable to hold on to a three-point lead with 1:47 remaining. West Virginia also dropped an NCAA Tournament first-round game against Gonzaga at CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh.
On the horizon, following games against Georgetown and Robert Morris, is a Dec. 13 date against Richmond, which climbed into the polls at No. 19 following its 12-point win at Kentucky last weekend.
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