West Virginia Mountaineers
2021-22 record: 16-17, 4-14 in the Big 12
Head Coach: Bob Huggins
Tenure at West Virginia: 16th season
Career coaching record: 916-399
Home court: WVU Coliseum
Starters: G Kedrian Johnson, G Erik Stevenson, F Emmitt Matthews Jr., F Tre Mitchell, C Jimmy Bell
Bench: G Joe Toussaint, G Kobe Johnson, G Seth Wilson, C James Okonkwo, F Mohamed Wague
Overview: Bringing in nine new players, it’s safe to say Mountaineer head coach Bob Huggins looked to overhaul his roster after a tough 4-14 record in conference play last year. The team managed a victory in the first round of the Big 12 tournament against Kansas State, but lost in the next round to Kansas, ending their season. Leading scorers Taz Sherman and Sean McNeil both left the program, and the team returns just five players from their roster a year ago.
Included in those new players are seven additions from the transfer portal. Perhaps the two most impactful ones will be former Texas forward Tre Mitchell and former South Carolina guard Erik Stevenson, who both had a ton of teams interested in the portal. However, the X-factor for this team is the sole returning starter, senior Kedrian Johnson, who averaged 5.3 points per game last year. Picked to finish ninth in the Big 12 Preseason Poll, West Virginia enters the year with a chip on its shoulder.
Team ceiling: The transfer-laden Mountaineers exceed expectations in the Big 12, challenging the likes of Kansas, Baylor, Texas Tech, Texas and TCU during regular season play. By March, the team is on the bubble, looking to make noise in the Big 12 tournament to secure a bid to the NCAA tournament.
Team floor: Bob Huggins’ transfer experiment backfires as the lack of team chemistry comes to haunt West Virginia. The preseason poll accurately predicts West Virginia’s finish as they are unable to crack the NCAA tournament.
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