Saturday, February 21
Fort Worth, Texas
5 p.m.
West Virginia University
at
TCU
Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks
Mountaineers Look to Rebound at TCU on Saturday
February 20, 2026 01:10 PM | Men's Basketball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Some recalibrating is in order for the West Virginia University men's basketball team following its disappointing 61-56 home loss to Utah on Wednesday night.
Now, the Mountaineers will have to right themselves on the road with games looming on Saturday at TCU and on Tuesday night at Oklahoma State.
TCU and Oklahoma State are part of a five-team logjam between ninth and 13th place in the conference standings seeking wins to improve their seeding for next month's Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City.
TCU, at 6-7, sits one game below 7-6 West Virginia, BYU and UCF with five regular season games remaining before the start of March Madness.
The unpredictable nature of the Big 12 has been on display this week, starting on Monday night with Iowa State's 70-67 upset victory over second-ranked Houston. Tuesday night saw 14-12 Arizona State stun 13th-ranked Texas Tech, which must now play the rest of the season without star player JT Toppin, Kansas State, with an interim coach, defeating Baylor, and UCF recovering from a recent three-game skid to knock off TCU in Orlando.
And, of course, we all know what happened in Morgantown on Wednesday night.
West Virginia must put that performance behind it and lock in on a TCU team that is in a similar position with a 16-10 overall record and fighting for its postseason life.
The Horned Frogs currently have a 47 NCAA NET ranking, which has them outside of the tournament as the last team out, according to the most recent ESPN Bracketology updated Friday morning.
West Virginia went from the Next Four Out category two days ago to completely off the board following its loss to Utah, but the good news for the Mountaineers is opportunities are there for a return.
WVU also has games left against 23rd-ranked BYU and a rematch coming up at the end of the regular season against UCF, now 46th in the NET.
The Mountaineers slipped to 61 following their five-point defeat to Utah.
Beating TCU in Fort Worth has become a big chore for West Virginia of late. The Mountaineers have dropped four straight at Schollmaier Arena since their 74-66 victory there on Feb. 23, 2021, and are just 1-7 over their last eight games there.
This year's TCU squad features a pair of versatile 245-pound-plus forwards in David Punch and Xavier Edmonds, who have combined to average 26.6 points and 12.9 rebounds per game.
Their ability to score off the bounce and put pressure on the rim has certainly gotten West Virginia coach Ross Hodge's attention.
"Both of those guys are so versatile with their ability to drive the ball from the perimeter with their size and physicality," he said on this week's United Bank Playbook segment taped with Tony Caridi. "They lead the Big 12 in free throw attempts, and they do a great job of getting fouled. They also lead the Big 12 at shots at the rim, so we have to be really physical without fouling and keep the ball out of the paint."
West Virginia's inability to control the glass was a contributing factor in its loss to Utah on Wednesday night. The Utes grabbed 12 offensive rebounds and had a double-digit rebounding advantage in the game.
Free throw shooting also played a big role in the outcome. Utah doubled up WVU, which managed to make just seven of its 15 free throw attempts. For a team that has struggled mightily to score in recent Big 12 games, making the free ones is a must.
Hodge is anticipating another physical affair on Saturday night in Fort Worth.Â
"They are tough, physical, and do a really good job of rebounding," he explained. "They have an aggressive style offensively; (they) put a lot of rim and paint pressure on you and draw a lot of fouls, so it's going to be a physical battle, for sure."
Defensively, Hodge said he is expecting the Horned Frogs to be aggressive in their ball-screen coverages.
"They will put two (defenders) on the ball and trap some in the post and make it hard on you," the coach observed.
Saturday's game will tip off at 5 p.m. ET and will be televised nationally on Peacock and NBC Sports Network (James Westling and Jordan Cornette).
Mountaineer Sports Network radio coverage with Tony Caridi, Brad Howe and studio host David Kahn will tip things off at 4 p.m. on stations throughout West Virginia, online via WVUsports.com, and the Varsity Network and WVU Gameday apps.
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Now, the Mountaineers will have to right themselves on the road with games looming on Saturday at TCU and on Tuesday night at Oklahoma State.
TCU and Oklahoma State are part of a five-team logjam between ninth and 13th place in the conference standings seeking wins to improve their seeding for next month's Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City.
TCU, at 6-7, sits one game below 7-6 West Virginia, BYU and UCF with five regular season games remaining before the start of March Madness.
The unpredictable nature of the Big 12 has been on display this week, starting on Monday night with Iowa State's 70-67 upset victory over second-ranked Houston. Tuesday night saw 14-12 Arizona State stun 13th-ranked Texas Tech, which must now play the rest of the season without star player JT Toppin, Kansas State, with an interim coach, defeating Baylor, and UCF recovering from a recent three-game skid to knock off TCU in Orlando.
And, of course, we all know what happened in Morgantown on Wednesday night.
West Virginia must put that performance behind it and lock in on a TCU team that is in a similar position with a 16-10 overall record and fighting for its postseason life.
The Horned Frogs currently have a 47 NCAA NET ranking, which has them outside of the tournament as the last team out, according to the most recent ESPN Bracketology updated Friday morning.
West Virginia went from the Next Four Out category two days ago to completely off the board following its loss to Utah, but the good news for the Mountaineers is opportunities are there for a return.
WVU also has games left against 23rd-ranked BYU and a rematch coming up at the end of the regular season against UCF, now 46th in the NET.
The Mountaineers slipped to 61 following their five-point defeat to Utah.
Beating TCU in Fort Worth has become a big chore for West Virginia of late. The Mountaineers have dropped four straight at Schollmaier Arena since their 74-66 victory there on Feb. 23, 2021, and are just 1-7 over their last eight games there.
This year's TCU squad features a pair of versatile 245-pound-plus forwards in David Punch and Xavier Edmonds, who have combined to average 26.6 points and 12.9 rebounds per game.
Their ability to score off the bounce and put pressure on the rim has certainly gotten West Virginia coach Ross Hodge's attention.
"Both of those guys are so versatile with their ability to drive the ball from the perimeter with their size and physicality," he said on this week's United Bank Playbook segment taped with Tony Caridi. "They lead the Big 12 in free throw attempts, and they do a great job of getting fouled. They also lead the Big 12 at shots at the rim, so we have to be really physical without fouling and keep the ball out of the paint."
West Virginia's inability to control the glass was a contributing factor in its loss to Utah on Wednesday night. The Utes grabbed 12 offensive rebounds and had a double-digit rebounding advantage in the game.
Free throw shooting also played a big role in the outcome. Utah doubled up WVU, which managed to make just seven of its 15 free throw attempts. For a team that has struggled mightily to score in recent Big 12 games, making the free ones is a must.
Hodge is anticipating another physical affair on Saturday night in Fort Worth.Â
"They are tough, physical, and do a really good job of rebounding," he explained. "They have an aggressive style offensively; (they) put a lot of rim and paint pressure on you and draw a lot of fouls, so it's going to be a physical battle, for sure."
Defensively, Hodge said he is expecting the Horned Frogs to be aggressive in their ball-screen coverages.
"They will put two (defenders) on the ball and trap some in the post and make it hard on you," the coach observed.
Saturday's game will tip off at 5 p.m. ET and will be televised nationally on Peacock and NBC Sports Network (James Westling and Jordan Cornette).
Mountaineer Sports Network radio coverage with Tony Caridi, Brad Howe and studio host David Kahn will tip things off at 4 p.m. on stations throughout West Virginia, online via WVUsports.com, and the Varsity Network and WVU Gameday apps.
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United Bank Playbook: TCU Preview
Friday, February 20
Ross Hodge | Utah Postgame
Thursday, February 19
Honor Huff & Chance Moore | Utah Postgame
Thursday, February 19
Ross Hodge | Utah Preview
Tuesday, February 17
