# 2020–21 West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team

The 2020–21 West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team represented West Virginia University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Mountaineers were coached by Bob Huggins, in his 14th season as WVU's head coach, and played their home games at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, West Virginia as members of the Big 12 Conference. They finished the season 19–10, 11–6 in Big 12 Play to finish in 4th place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament to Oklahoma State. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they defeated Morehead State in the First Round before losing in the Second Round to Syracuse.

## Previous season

The Mountaineers finished 2019–20 season 21–10, 9–9 in Big 12 play to finish tied for third place in the conference. The Mountaineers were to play in the Big 12 Tournament, but it was canceled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Pos. | Number | Height | Weight | Previous School | Hometown | Reason for Leaving |
| Brandon Knapper | G | 2 | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Hargrave Military Academy | South Charleston, WV | Transferred to Eastern Kentucky |
| Logan Routt | F | 31 | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) | 260 lb (118 kg) | Cameron HS | Cameron, WV | Graduated |
| Chase Harler | G | 14 | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | Wheeling Central HS | Moundsville, WV | Graduated |
| Jermaine Haley | G | 10 | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Odessa College | Vancouver, BC | Graduated |

### Recruits
#### Recruiting class of 2020

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Isaiah Cottrell PF | Las Vegas, NV | Huntington Prep School | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 240 lb (110 kg) | Jun 13, 2019 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Taj Thweatt SF | Wildwood, NJ | Wildwood Catholic Academy | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | Sep 3, 2019 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Seny Ndiaye PF | Dakar, Senegal | Huntington Prep School | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | Jul 15, 2020 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Kedrian Johnson | 0 | G | 6'3" | 180 | Junior | Dallas, TX | Junior college transferred from Temple College. |

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 25, 2020* 9:30 pm, ESPN | No. 15 | vs. South Dakota State Crossover Classic quarterfinals | W 79–71 | 1–0 | 23 – McBride | 14 – Culver | 3 – McBride | Sanford Pentagon (0) Sioux Falls, SD |
| November 26, 2020* 2:30 pm, ESPN | No. 15 | vs. VCU Crossover Classic semifinals | W 78–66 | 2–0 | 23 – Culver | 16 – Tshiebwe | 5 – McCabe | Sanford Pentagon (0) Sioux Falls, SD |
| November 27, 2020* 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 15 | vs. Western Kentucky Crossover Classic final | W 70–64 | 3–0 | 15 – Culver | 8 – Osabuohien | 5 – Osabuohien | Sanford Pentagon (0) Sioux Falls, SD |
| December 2, 2020* 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 11 | vs. No. 1 Gonzaga Jimmy V Classic | L 82–87 | 3–1 | 18 – Culver | 15 – Culver | 5 – McBride | Bankers Life Fieldhouse (0) Indianapolis, IN |
| December 6, 2020* 4:30 pm, FS1 | No. 11 | at Georgetown Big 12/Big East Battle | W 80–71 | 4–1 | 17 – McBride | 9 – Culver | 7 – McBride | McDonough Gymnasium (0) Washington, DC |
| December 9, 2020* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | No. 11 | Robert Morris | Canceled due to COVID-19 issues | Canceled due to COVID-19 issues | Canceled due to COVID-19 issues | Canceled due to COVID-19 issues | Canceled due to COVID-19 issues | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, WV |
| December 11, 2020* 3:00 pm, ESPN+ | No. 11 | North Texas | W 62–50 | 5–1 | 15 – McNeil | 10 – Culver | 5 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (291) Morgantown, WV |
| December 13, 2020* 1:00 pm, ESPN | No. 11 | No. 19 Richmond | W 87–71 | 6–1 | 20 – McBride | 11 – Culver | 5 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (371) Morgantown, WV |
| December 18, 2020 9:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 8 | Iowa State | W 70–65 | 7–1 (1–0) | 18 – tied | 12 – Culver | 4 – Osabuohien | WVU Coliseum (0) Morgantown, WV |
| December 22, 2020 9:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 7 | at No. 3 Kansas | L 65–79 | 7–2 (1–1) | 24 – McNeil | 8 – Culver | 5 – Osabuohien | Allen Fieldhouse (2,500) Lawrence, KS |
| December 29, 2020* 2:00 pm, ESPN+ | No. 9 | Northeastern | W 73–51 | 8–2 | 18 – Culver | 15 – Tshiebwe | 5 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (311) Morgantown, WV |
| January 2, 2021 4:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 9 | at Oklahoma | L 71–75 | 8–3 (1–2) | 19 – tied | 6 – Culver | 4 – McBride | Lloyd Noble Center (2,431) Norman, OK |
| January 4, 2021 9:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 9 | at Oklahoma State | W 87–84 | 9–3 (2–2) | 22 – Culver | 19 – Culver | 5 – tied | Gallagher-Iba Arena (3,350) Stillwater, OK |
| January 9, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 14 | No. 4 Texas | L 70–72 | 9–4 (2–3) | 17 – Sherman | 16 – Culver | 2 – tied | WVU Coliseum (305) Morgantown, WV |
| January 16, 2021 1:00 pm | No. 14 | TCU | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, WV |
| January 19, 2021 TBD | No. 14 | Oklahoma State | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, WV |
| January 23, 2021 4:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 14 | at Kansas State | W 69–47 | 10–4 (3–3) | 18 – McBride | 5 – Osabuohien | 5 – tied | Bramlage Coliseum (931) Manhattan, KS |
| January 25, 2021 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 11 | No. 10 Texas Tech | W 88–87 | 11–4 (4–3) | 24 – McBride | 9 – Culver | 6 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (339) Morgantown, WV |
| January 30, 2021* 2:00 pm, ESPN | No. 11 | Florida | L 80–85 | 11–5 | 28 – Culver | 12 – Culver | 9 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (1,000) Morgantown, WV |
| February 2, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | No. 17 | at Iowa State | W 76–72 | 12–5 (5–3) | 18 – Sherman | 12 – Culver | 5 – McCabe | Hilton Coliseum (1,059) Ames, IA |
| February 6, 2021 2:00 pm, CBS | No. 17 | No. 23 Kansas | W 91–79 | 13–5 (6–3) | 29 – McBride | 9 – Culver | 8 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (1,500) Morgantown, WV |
| February 9, 2021 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 14 | at No. 7 Texas Tech | W 82–71 | 14–5 (7–3) | 26 – McNeil | 8 – Culver | 4 – McBride | United Supermarkets Arena (4,500) Lubbock, TX |
| February 13, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPN+ | No. 14 | No. 12 Oklahoma | L 90–91 $^{2OT}$ | 14–6 (7–4) | 29 – Culver | 14 – Culver | 8 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (2,800) Morgantown, WV |
| February 15, 2021 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 13 | No. 2 Baylor | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, WV |
| February 18, 2021 5:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 13 | at No. 2 Baylor | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Ferrell Center Waco, TX |
| February 20, 2021 3:00 p.m., ABC | No. 13 | at No. 12 Texas | W 84–82 | 15–6 (8–4) | 17 – McBride | 7 – Matthews Jr. | 4 – McBride | Frank Erwin Center (0) Austin, TX |
| February 23, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 10 | at TCU | W 74–66 | 16–6 (9–4) | 23 – Sherman | 14 – Culver | 5 – McBride | Schollmaier Arena (1,877) Fort Worth, TX |
| February 25, 2021 4:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 10 | at No. 2 Baylor | Canceled due to scheduling changes | Canceled due to scheduling changes | Canceled due to scheduling changes | Canceled due to scheduling changes | Canceled due to scheduling changes | Ferrell Center Waco, TX |
| February 27, 2021 4:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 10 | Kansas State | W 65–43 | 17–6 (10–4) | 16 – McNeil | 7 – Osabuohien | 3 – Tied | WVU Coliseum (2,800) Morgantown, WV |
| March 2, 2021 5:00 pm, ESPN | No. 6 | No. 3 Baylor | L 89–94 $^{OT}$ | 17–7 (10–5) | 26 – Sherman | 9 – Culver | 8 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (2,800) Morgantown, WV |
| March 4, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | No. 6 | TCU | W 76–67 | 18–7 (11–5) | 22 – Bridges | 12 – Bridges | 5 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (2,800) Morgantown, WV |
| March 6, 2021 2:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 6 | No. 17 Oklahoma State | L 80–85 | 18–8 (11–6) | 20 – Sherman | 6 – Bridges | 4 – McBride | WVU Coliseum (2,800) Morgantown, WV |
| Big 12 Tournament |||||||||
| March 11, 2021 11:30 am, ESPN | (4) No. 10 | vs. (5) No. 12 Oklahoma State Quarterfinals | L 69–72 | 18–9 | 19 – Tied | 9 – Culver | 6 – McBride | T-Mobile Center (3,491) Kansas City, MO |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 19, 2021* 9:50 pm, truTV | (3 MW) No. 13 | vs. (14 MW) Morehead State First Round | W 84–67 | 19–9 | 30 – McBride | 7 – Culver | 6 – McBride | Lucas Oil Stadium Indianapolis, IN |
| March 21, 2021* 5:15 pm, CBS | (3 MW) No. 13 | vs. (11 MW) Syracuse Second Round | L 72–75 | 19–10 | 23 – McNeil | 9 – Bridges | 7 – McBride | Bankers Life Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking т = Tied with team above or below :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Final |
| AP | 15 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 14 | 14 | 11 | 17 | 14 | 13 | 10 | 6 | 10 | 13 | Not released |
| Coaches | 15 | 15^ | 10 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 16 | 14 | 15 | 11 | 18 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 5т | 9 | 13 | 18 |
*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings. ^Coaches did not release a Week 1 poll.