Bob Huggins: Oscar Tshiebwe Will Not Return to WVU This Season

When West Virginia announced this morning that sophomore big man Oscar Tshiebwe was stepping away from the men’s basketball team there was a lot of uncertainty about what that meant and what the exact situation was.

During a press conference an hour later, WVU coach Bob Huggins added some clarity to the situation.

“Did it catch me by surprise? No,” Huggins said.

When asked if the door was open for Tshiebwe to possibly return to the Mountaineers later this season, Huggins was definitive in his answer.

“No, absolutely not,” Huggins said. “No return.”

Huggins has commented this season that Tshiebwe did not have as productive a summer as he would have liked and harkened back to those sentiments when explaining his reasoning.

“We’ve got guys who have worked their buts off all summer to get an opportunity,” Huggins said. “I am more than confident that they will do a great job for us. So why would we screw that up?”

Tshiebwe’s numbers have been down from his stellar freshman season, averaging 8.5 points and 7.8 rebounds in 10 games this year.

West Virginia is scheduled to play at Oklahoma at 4 p.m. tomorrow in Norman. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.