Ross Hodge Offers Honest Assessment of Physicality, Effort in Arizona Loss

The WVU basketball team was handed an 88-53 loss to the No. 1 Arizona Wildcats Saturday, moving the team to 4-3 in the Big 12 and 13-7 overall.

Arizona is the top-ranked team in the nation for a reason, and WVU head coach Ross Hodge knew the team needs some “very special performances” to pull off an upset in Tucson.

“They just don’t let you get anything close to the basket,” Hodge said in the postgame press conference. “And if you’re gonna come in here and beat the number one team in the country on their home floor, you gotta get some very special performances from a lot of individuals and you’re gonna have to probably shoot the ball at an incredible clip. And we didn’t tonight.”

One positive area Hodge took away from Saturday’s matchup was how the team stuck together, saying the team’s energy remained mostly the same as it was during its 76-63 win at Arizona State Wednesday.

“You have a great win on the road Wednesday against Arizona State and you’re celebrating it and you love each other. And then you come in here, you get your, your tail whipped. You gotta be able to do both in the same, and I thought our guys did that for the most part and I thought they competed for the most part,” Hodge said.

The Mountaineers have a quick turnaround, as they host Kansas State Tuesday. Now, Hodge says the team needs to put this loss behind it.

“It’s hard to win on the road in the Big 12,” Hodge said. “I said I think it’s the best college basketball league in the country. We got a good win on Wednesday and you gotta kind of put it to bed and you get your butt kicked today. And same thing, got a long flight back. Gotta try to get some rest and you know, we play Tuesday.”

WVU basketball will play again at 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday When the Mountaineers host Kansa State.

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