Opinion
What Changes Can WVU Basketball Make as Regular Season Nears End?
The WVU basketball team has had a troubling February, currently sitting at 2-4 on the month and ninth in the Big 12 at 7-8 in league play. The Mountaineers are also in the midst of a three-loss skid, which knocked them off of Joe Lunardi’s bubble in his latest Bracketology report.
It’s safe to say what WVU is doing right now isn’t working. Head coach Ross Hodge has discussed potential changes. In his press conference after a 61-56 loss to Utah at home, he said he and the staff have “considered it all,” including changes to the starting lineup.
“We’ve considered it all. In particular at home, I’ve never been a guy that’s went and stayed in hotels at home games… a lot of people do that just to kind of keep the feel and the routine consistent, you know,” Hodge said.
“Starting lineups, we’ve evaluated. Again, we’ve kind of evaluated where we go with the ball early, who gets the ball early, what type of shots are you getting early? Sub a little faster. We have let them- there’s been some stretches where we let them go a little longer… We’ve evaluated it all and we’ll continue to evaluate it at all.”
The West Virginia men’s basketball coaching staff and players huddle in the middle of a game during the 2025-26 season. (WVSN photo by Kelsie LeRose)
If you’ve followed the team, you know the starting lineup has remained consistent aside from one game when senior forward Brenen Lorient was out with injury.
The press conference that Hodge mentioned the idea of staying in hotels was on Feb. 16. At the time, WVU was having better luck on the road than at home, with two straight road wins and three straight home losses. However, the Mountaineers have lost two-straight on the road since those comments.
Hodge has used the phrase “defensive intensity”quite a bit in recent games, which is no surprise as a defensive-minded coach. WVU is currently fifth nationally for opponent points per game at 63.5 points per game.
However, the offensive side does not match that success, ranking No. 325 nationally in points per game 69.
Ross Hodge Blames ‘Defensive Intensity’ for WVU’s Loss to Oklahoma State
The offense isn’t holding up its end of the bargain this season, with the team tallying just five points in the last eight minutes when TCU came back to defeat WVU 60-54. It needs to be said that WVU competes in a strong defensive league in the Big 12.
Hodge has a point from a defensive standpoint, as WVU basketball allows 32.4 second-half points per game (No. 4 nationally) compared to 30.9 first-half points per game (No. 20 nationally). The team lets up more points in the second half, but scoring offense in both halves are considerably low nationally with 32.2 first-half points per game (No. 294) and 36.4 second-half points per game (No. 290).
In short, the offense is falling behind while the defense is performing well enough as a whole to win games. However, scoring droughts and inconsistency while shooting have plagued WVU, and it’s unclear whether that can be fixed with just three games left in the regular season.
WVU basketball will take the court again at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday when the team hosts No. 19 BYU.
Find more coverage of Ross Hodge and WVU basketball at WV Sports Now.
