And It’s Nothing Short of Controversial
By: Justin Walker
Despite nearly every NCAA tournament bracket matrix or “bracketologist” having WVU basketball solidly in the field, the Mountaineer men were left out of the bracket that really mattered.
West Virginia Mountaineer fans across the country were surprised to see WVU’s name not get called as an entrant into the NCAA Tournament on Selection Sunday. Darian DeVries’ squad was projected to be either a 10-seed or 11-seed by most bracket experts. As seen below, one such service, Bracket Matrix, had the Mountaineers in 111 of 111 brackets.
West Virginia, which was in the field for 111 of 111 brackets on @bracketproject becomes the first unanimous selection to ever miss the dance.
— Nathan Carroll (@Nathan_26_) March 16, 2025
Shocking to say the least. https://t.co/8WwO6xJj0Z
NCAA Tournament Committee Chair and UNC Athletics Director, Bubba Cunningham, gave an on-air interview with CBS after the brackets were revealed. When talking about the Mountaineers not making the cut, he said, “Player availability is something we talk about quite a bit.” Cunningham referenced the absence of West Virginia forward, Tucker DeVries, who has been out most of the season due to shoulder surgery.
That explanation makes little sense. WVU played over 20 games without DeVries, including the entirety of their Big 12 schedule. During that time they got wins over two top 10 teams. They beat Iowa State at home and defeated Kansas on the road. They had a total of 10 Big 12 Conference wins, with four of those away from Morgantown.
When comparing WVU basketball’s resume with some of the bubble teams who got in, it creates even more confusion. The Mountaineers were 6-10 in Quad 1 games. North Carolina and Xavier, who both got into the field, were a combined 2-21 in such games. West Virginia was also ranked 24th in the RPI. West Virginia Director of Athletics, Wren Baker, put out the following statement on X, which also highlights WVU’s resume.
Heartbroken for @WVUhoops. I can’t comprehend this team being left out. Our resume was better than several teams in the field and it’s a terrible travesty that we weren’t included. I have so much appreciation for @Coach_DeVries, our coaching staff and players. They deserved… pic.twitter.com/SDOemgXeZ0
— Wren Baker (@wrenbaker) March 16, 2025
Head Coach Darian DeVries also put out the following statement.
Statement from coach Darian DeVries. pic.twitter.com/AWPchdJ3du
— WVU Men's Basketball (@WVUhoops) March 17, 2025
Check out this episode of Hoops from the Hills if you want to watch a video about this story.
Photo Credit: WVU Athletics