West Virginia men's basketball has found their new head coach, hiring North Texas' Ross Hodge.
Hodge spent the last two seasons as the head coach of North Texas, compiling a 46-23 record during that time including a 27-8 record this past season. Hodge now comes to WVU, bringing his philosophy of good defense, with strong shooting ability from the outside.
Offense
Offensively, Hodge's teams the last two seasons have relied heavily on the three, but they still have struggled to score.
This year, UNT scored 68 points per game, which was last in the American. The year prior, they scored 69.2 points per game which was second-worst in the conference.
UNT's 45.10 field goal percentage was fifth in the league this year and 140th in the country. However, from beyond the arc, they shot 36.10 percent this year, which was fourth in the league and 69th in the country. Last season, UNT shot 37.70 percent from deep, which was best in the American and 14th in the country. They also made 8.4 3-pointers per game last year, which was top 100 in the country.
From the free throw line, UNT was 30th in the country this year, shooting 77 percent. Last year, they shot 74 percent from the charity stripe.
On the offensive glass, KenPom said UNT was 93rd in the country in offensive rebounding percentage.
During UNT's eight losses, they averaged 60.1 points per game, while during their 27 wins, they averaged 70.3 points per game.
Defense
Defensively, North Texas has had one of the better defenses not only in the American Conference, but also in the country.
This past season, UNT held their opponents to 59.9 points per game, tops in the league and third in the country. They also held opponents to shoot 30.60 percent from beyond the arc, which was also first in the conference and 30th in the country.
North Texas forced 12.1 turnovers per game this season, fourth in the American, and their 41.10 opponents' field goal percentage was 43rd nationally.
Over the past two seasons, UNT has held opponents to 61.85 points per game. In 2023-2024, the Mean Green held opponents to 63.8 points per game which was 11th-best in the country.
Hodge's defenses are not necessarily turning opponents over, as they averaged 12.2 turnovers forced per game the last two seasons, with an average ranking of 5.5 out of the 13 teams in the American.
In terms of rebounding, this past year, North Texas was 11th in rebounds per game and 10th in offensive rebounds per game. However, they were still second in rebounding margin.
According to KenPom, UNT's effective field goal percentage defense was 26th best in the country, while their adjusted defensive efficiency was 42nd. For perspective, WVU was ranked 17th and 14th in those two categories respectively.
This past year, North Texas was 12th in blocks and fifth in steals in their conference. During their eight losses this year, UNT gave up 65.4 points per game. During their 27 wins, their defense has held opponents to 58.26 points per game.
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