The 2025 NCAA Tournament field of 68 is set, as March Madness tips off this week. There were several well-deserving teams that earned bids, but there were also teams wondering why they were left out.
Although 68 teams is a large field, Selection Sunday can produce controversy with teams that didn’t make the bracket, and this year was no exception.
One of the first four teams out this year was West Virginia. Despite the Mountaineers’ wins over tournament teams such as Arizona, Kansas, Iowa State and Robert Morris, WVU didn’t make the tournament.
Let’s take a look at why West Virginia is on the outside looking in, and what the selection committee had to say about the decision.
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Why didn’t West Virginia make the NCAA Tournament?
West Virginia started the season off hot, jumping out to a 13-4 record through mid-January. But as the Mountaineers got deep into Big 12 play, they struggled against a deep conference. The Mountaineers finished with a 10-10 record in conference play, and lost in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament.
But WVU also had some impressive wins on its resume, too. Some notable Quad 1 wins included ones over Gonzaga and Arizona at neutral sites. The Mountaineers also had some big Quad 1 road wins against Kansas, UConn and Utah, as well as a home win over Iowa State. Overall, WVU finished with a 6-10 record in Quad 1 games, including a 4-3 Quad 2 and 4-0 Quad 3 record.
Notable losses for the Mountaineers came vs. Pitt, Louisville, Texas Tech and Baylor. WVU also lost twice to Houston and BYU.
Overall, WVU finished with a net ranking of 51st and a KenPom ranking of 53rd. Here’s where they rank alongside some of the last four teams in and out, comparing Net rankings:
The Last Four In and First Four Out:
— Chris Vannini (@chrisvannini.com) March 16, 2025 at 6:38 PM
West Virginia’s athletic director, Wren Baker, posted a graph to X, formerly known as Twitter, about WVU’s resume:
The Last Four In and First Four Out:
— Chris Vannini (@chrisvannini.com) March 16, 2025 at 6:38 PM
Mountaineers head coach Darian DeVries, who coached his first season in Morgantown this year, also released a statement expressing his disappointment about his team being left out:
Statement from coach Darian DeVries. pic.twitter.com/AWPchdJ3du
— WVU Men’s Basketball (@WVUhoops) March 17, 2025
The NCAA’s selection committee’s chairman, Bubba Baker, discussed the WVU decision on Sunday. He mentioned the lack of availability of Mountaineer star guard Tucker DeVries. He missed most of the 2024-25 season due to injury:
Bubba Cunningham directly states that the committee took Tucker DeVries’ injury into account: “Player availability is something we talk about quite a bit.”
DeVries played eight games this season. WVU played its entire Big 12 schedule without him.
— Nick Farrell (@ByNickFarrell) March 16, 2025
DeVries hasn’t played in a game for WVU since Dec. 6, and he played in just eight overall games for the Mountaineers. So he hasn’t been a real piece for this team most of the season. If he had played for the Mountaineers all season and got hurt recently, then Baker’s argument would hold up much better.
WVU also had plenty of Quad 1 wins without DeVries in the lineup, including the ones vs. Kansas, Iowa State, Cincinnati and Utah. Not to mention WVU overall had more Quad 1 wins than North Carolina, who was one of the last four teams in the tournament. The Tar Heels finished 1-12 in those games.
MORE: Biggest March Madness snubs
Who were the last four teams out of the NCAA Tournament?
West Virginia (Net Rank 51) joined Indiana (54), Ohio State (41) and Boise State (44) as the last four teams left out of the tournament.
The last four teams in the tournament were Texas (Net Rank 39), Xavier (45), San Diego State (52) and North Carolina (36).
MORE: Why did North Carolina make the NCAA tourney
West Virginia record
West Virginia finished 19-13 overall with a 10-10 record in conference play. They also lost in their first game in the Big 12 tournament, falling to Colorado 67-60.