IRVING, Texas — By virtue of upsetting Kansas in the regular-season finale, West Virginia claimed the sixth seed in the Big 12 tournament and received a first-round bye.
The Mountaineers (17-14), who play Thursday night in the late quarterfinal against Texas (22-9), likely need to win the tournament to garner an NCAA bid, though winning two games and reaching the championship round could put West Virginia back on the at-large bubble.
“We’re just trying to keep hope alive and keep the faith alive,” said freshman forward Devin Williams after Saturday’s 92-86 upset of the Jayhawks. “We’re farther than we were last year, and that’s a plus, but still we’re not ready for it to end.”
Even a rousing victory over RPI No. 2 Kansas only improved West Virginia’s RPI a couple notches to 80.
Behind 22 points and 13 rebounds against Kansas, Williams produced his third consecutive double-double and said the goal is clear heading to Kansas City.
“Win it all,” he said. “That’s the only mindset we can have, getting that ‘ship.”
First round—Wednesday
7 p.m. No. 8 Oklahoma State vs. No. 9 Texas Tech
9:30 p.m.No. 7 Baylor vs. No. 10 TCU
Quarterfinals—Thursday
12:30 p.m. No. 4 Iowa State vs. No. 5 Kansas State
3 p.m. No. 1 Kansas vs. Oklahoma State-Texas Tech winner
7 p.m. No. 2 Oklahoma vs. Baylor-TCU winner
8:30 p.m. No. 3 Texas vs. No. 6 West Virginia
Semifinals—Friday
7 p.m. Thursday afternoon winners
9:30 p.m. Thursday night winners
Championship—Saturday
9 p.m. Semifinal Winners