West Virginia's sweep against Kansas came at an inopportune time for the Mountaineers.
They now enter the Big 12 Tournament as the No. 1 overall seed, but they will have to likely win the tournament if they want a shot at hosting. Head coach Steve Sabins believes if his team goes 3-0 and wins it all this week, they will be a host come next weekend.
"I don't want to say it was our turn, but I'd be interested to know if there's any team in the league that hadn't been swept yet. We were probably the last team to experience that. So you don't get a pick when the timing is, and you don't get a pick how it goes. I think it's just about the response," Sabins said.
That response will be crucial for West Virginia, who for the last month has been a lock to be a host, until their recent slide has them on the outside looking in on the top 16.
WVU has the Big 12 regular season crown and an RPI of No. 28. Three more wins would certainly boost that number, and give WVU two titles, something Sabins believes cannot be denied.
"I think we're playing for a lot. If we won a regular season title and a conference tournament title, we're hosting. So you can't keep us out of that deal. So it is really important and hosting gives you a better chance to win the whole thing, and that's the objective at the end of the day," Sabins said.
Recent history is unkind to the Mountaineers in the Big 12 Tournament, going 0-6 in the last three seasons combined.
Sabins said even if the goal is to host, the larger goal is to be successful when the NCAA Tournament starts next weekend. Sabins said that's the weird spot he is in, juggling the want to win this tournament and host with the want to be ready to go when the NCAA Tournament begins.
"It's this weird purgatory week where you really have to balance winning a tournament title and setting your team up to be the most successful they can be in the big tournament. So it's not that it's not important because there are ramifications, it's just nobody can go full steam, the only thing that matters is winning the [conference] tournament unless you're not going to play in a regional, and you have to.
"So you have six teams that the only thing that matters is the [conference] tournament, and then you have another half that they want to win the tournament, but don't have to win the [conference] tournament. So that's the difference, essentially. And so that's why it can get a little bit wonky when it comes to pitching, and setting people up, and those kinds of things," Sabins said.
WVU's current projections have them as a two-seed, but three wins and another trophy could make that conversation interesting entering Selection Monday.
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