WVU G Erik Stevenson on NCAA Tournament Hopes: ‘We’re In’

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia guard Erik Stevenson is very confident in WVU’s odds to make the NCAA Tournament. The Mountaineers secured their 18th win of the season, defeating No. 11 Kansas State on Saturday.

“We’re in,” Stevenson said postgame. “If we’re not in I don’t know what to do. Who else do we have to beat? Do we have to play Joe Lunardi one-on-one?”

Stevenson gave it all in one last performance at the WVU Coliseum, recording 27 points, four rebounds and five assists. The 6-foot-3 guard shot 11-of-22 from the field, making 5-threes.

For Stevenson, and his close teammate Emmitt Matthews, it doesn’t matter what seed West Virginia gets for Selection Sunday.

“That don’t matter,” Stevenson said.

“We want to win as many games as we can,” Matthews added.

West Virginia currently stands at 18-13 and 7-11 in the Big 12 this season. WVU rallied to finish the regular season 3-1, with their one loss coming off a basket versus Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse.

Kansas State head coach Jerome Tang gave the Mountaineers credit, as well as the entire Big 12.

“I know we [both] wanted to win the game. [For WVU] not only because it’s senior night, but because people are saying they’re on the bubble. That’s everybody outside of the Big 12 who says there’s a Big 12 team on the bubble,” Tang said. “Any team in our league is an NCAA Tournament team and can win games in the NCAA Tournament.”

West Virginia awaits the winner of Oklahoma State-Texas Tech to find out who they’re facing in the first round of the Big 12 Conference Tournament. Luckily for WVU, they will be playing for just their seed line next week in Kansas City.