WVU Basketball to Keep Chip On Shoulder in Big 12 Play

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – WVU basketball capped off non-conference play with an 86-51 victory over MVSU on Monday, meaning the Mountaineers will face the test of Big 12 play at the turn of the new year.

It is no secret that the Big 12 is one of the best conferences in men’s basketball, featuring six teams in the AP Top 25 and three teams in the KenPom top 10. Head coach Ross Hodge highlighted what he expects.

“I’ve seen it, I’ve watched it. And you don’t have to be, you know, Albert Einstein to realize that these, some of the best teams in the country, some of the best coaches and some of the best venues,” Hodge said in the postgame press conference Monday. “So, there’s an excitement to it obviously, and appreciation as well.”

Senior center Harlan Obioha spoke on expectations of this 2025-26 WVU team, saying the team will continue to have a chip on its shoulder through the rest of the schedule.

“We came in here with a chip on our shoulder, we knew no one thought we were gonna win this conference coming in here. And so nothing’s new to us right now,” Obioha said.

WVU’s Harlan Obioha battles for the ball during the 2025 Backyard Brawl against Pitt. (WVSN photo by Kelsie LeRose)

“Like this is exactly where we thought everyone thought we would be. So I think going into Big 12 play, we’re on the same mission, the same mindset, chip on our shoulder. They wake up like we do, they eat food like we do. So … they don’t have nothing that we don’t have.”

Senior guard Treysen shared the same sentiment, emphasizing grit and embracing having a “dog fight” in conference play.

“I think it’s gonna be a dog fight,” Eaglestaff said. “We have a bunch of guys that are immensely bought in and physically we all put the work in way more than I think any of the team in the country game. … So I think that first Big 12 game, we’re all gonna come with the fact that like we gotta go punch first and we gotta know it’s gonna be a long game and obviously stuff’s not gonna our way. So we just gotta stay together, stay together and great play with a lot of grit.”

WVU basketball will take the court again in its Big 12 opener at 7 p.m. on Jan. 2 when it plays Iowa State at Hilton Coliseum.

Find more coverage of WVU basketball at WV Sports Now.