A Tale of Two Teams: WVU basketball shows stark contrast in BYU loss compared to TCU performance

It’s remarkable how much can change in just a few days.

Tuesday night — or Wednesday morning, if you prefer — West Virginia men’s basketball was feeling confident and optimistic about their postseason chances. The Mountaineers had thoroughly dominated TCU in a 73-55 victory, and it seemed like they were building momentum that could propel them into a solid position for an NCAA Tournament berth.

However, just four days later, the Mountaineers have left their fanbase questioning whether they can close out the regular season strong enough to feel secure heading into the Big 12 Tournament, which is now less than two weeks away. The doubts emerged following a disheartening 77-56 road defeat to No. 25 BYU, a loss that felt even more lopsided than the 21-point margin suggests.

WVU struggled offensively, shooting a mere 33 percent from the floor compared to BYU’s 53 percent, and were soundly outpaced in rebounding 43-32. The Mountaineers had only one player score in double digits — senior Javon Small with 15 points — and were outscored 43-16 from the bench in the loss.

The most striking takeaway from the defeat is how it highlights the stark difference between the two versions of this Mountaineers team and how drastically their performances can vary. In less than a week, they went from appearing as a Sweet 16 contender to looking like a borderline NIT team.

Such inconsistency is typically problematic for any basketball squad, but with WVU currently on the NCAA Tournament bubble and little room for error, it only increases the uncertainty surrounding their prospects.

WVU certainly possesses the talent to earn an NCAA Tournament bid and potentially make a deep run in March Madness under Darian DeVries’ first season as head coach. But they also have the potential to falter and be blown out by teams they could normally compete with on another night.

Which version of the team will show up during this crucial final stretch of the season remains uncertain — and Saturday’s loss to BYU leaves more questions than answers.