Feb 8, 2025; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers guard Javon Small (7) celebrates with West Virginia Mountaineers guard Toby Okani (5) following a score during the second half against the Utah Utes at WVU Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images Ben Queen-Imagn Images

A Close Look at West Virginia's KenPom Ratings & Strength of Schedule

Originally posted on West Virginia Mountaineers on SI
By Schuyler Callihan | Last updated Feb 10, 2025 6:50 PM ET

Darian DeVries is quickly learning how challenging the Big 12 Conference is but has done a tremendous job of getting West Virginia to a 6-6 record in league play despite the injuries and lack of depth.

Where do the Mountaineers sit in the KenPom ratings? Where do they rank offensively? Defensively? What about their strength of schedule? Here is some data pulled from KenPom.

KenPom Rating - 45th

By this ranking, the Mountaineers would be firmly in the NCAA Tournament field, and according to most projections, it's going to take an epic collapse in the final eight games of the season for the Mountaineers to miss out.

WVU has some big opportunities coming up to further strengthen its resume with games against BYU 2X (No. 37), Baylor (No. 26), Cincinnati (No. 53), and Texas Tech (No. 9).

Offensive Rating - 103rd

West Virginia's offensive struggles have been well-documented. They are, however, not nearly as poor as you would think. Playing at one of the slowest paces in the country helps hide their efficiency numbers to some degree by not having nearly as many shots going up. The Mountaineers average just 57.3 field goal attempts per game, which ranks 214 in the country. If guys like Amani Hansberry, Jonathan Powell, and Joseph Yesufu become consistent, the team's offensive rating should move comfortably inside the top 100.

Defensive Rating - 17th

Defense is this team's calling card, and that's no secret. When they play to the elite level they are capable of, they turn into a team that can beat anyone in the country. When it only shows up in spurts, or in some instances, not at all, that's how you get losses to inferior teams such as Arizona State and TCU. They say defense wins championships, and for WVU, it's going to be what makes or breaks their season.

Strength of Schedule - 18th

Life in the Big 12 is always challenging. By just being a member of the league, you're practically guaranteed to have one of the tougher schedules in the country. Aside from Colorado, just about anyone in this league can beat any of the top dogs on any given night. Playing Gonzaga, Louisville, Georgetown, and Pitt in non-con certainly helps the overall SOS. This will be one of the things that helps West Virginia on Selection Sunday.