Bob Huggins makes passionate case for West Virginia to make the NCAA Tournament

West Virginia lost a heartbreaker on the road two Kansas on Saturday, 76- 74. Losing is never fun, but it is particularly nerve-wracking when your squad is trying to keep its postseason hopes alive. Knowing that his Mountaineers’ tournament hopes are currently hanging in the balance following their loss to Kansas, West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins made a passionate case for his Mountaineers to make the NCAA’s big dance.

“We have far and away, it’s not even close, the best strength schedule in the country. And if that doesn’t mean something to the committee, shame on them. And not just that, I think you take a look at our scores; we deserve to be in the tournament,” said Huggins.

“They give you all that BS about ‘play a strong schedule.’ Well, if they continue to tell you to do that, then by God, they have to hold up their end of the bargain. So, I tell our guys, I don’t think, really, we have anything to worry about. And I will blast their ass as far (and) as long as I can if they don’t let these guys in the tournament. After years and years of ‘play a competitive schedule,’ the best teams are the teams that play the best strength to schedule. We have played the best strength of schedule, and it’s not arguable. We played the best, so I think they ought to get credit for it.”

Entering into this weekend, West Virginia is predicted to be an 11 seed, according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi. NCAA tournament expert has them on the ‘last four byes’ line. Despite their loss to Kansas, Huggins believes removing the Mountaineers from the tournament should not happen, given their body of work this season.

West Virginia has two more huge contests to end the season against ranked opponents. The first will be a road matchup on Monday against the No. 23 Iowa State Cyclones. That will be followed up by their regular season finale at home on Saturday against Kansas State. There is a lot of work still to be done by the Mountaineers, but if they win these last two games, Huggins shouldn’t have to explain to the rest of the world why his squad is deserving of a ticket to the big dance.