WVU’s Erik Stevenson on NCAA Tournament Future: ‘Do We Have to Play Joe Lunardi One-on-One?’
The West Virginia Mountaineers have been a recent subject of bubble trouble ahead of the 2023 NCAA Tournament, and following their recent upset win over the 11th-ranked Kansas State Wildcats, guard Erik Stevenson had some choice words for ESPN bracket expert Joe Lunardi.
Stevenson spoke post-game after upsetting the Wildcats 89-81, saying, “We’re in. If we’re not in, I don’t know what to do. Who else do we have to beat? Do we have to play Joe Lunardi one-on-one?”
The Mountaineers have been currently listed as a 10-seed in Lunardi’s recent update, one of the last teams from the Big 12 Conference receiving a bid for tournament play. They jolin the Kansas Jayhawks, Texas Longhorns, Baylor Bears, K-State Wildcats, Iowa State Cyclones and TCU Horned Frogs. For a more detailed breakdown of the seven teams in play, check out our write up here.
K-State head coach Jerome Tang spoke on the grit and tenacity from the Mountaineers and Bob Huggins, saying, “I know we both wanted to win the game. WVU not only because it’s senior night, but because people are saying they’re on the bubble. That’s everybody outside of the Big 12 who says there’s a Big 12 team on the bubble. Any team in our league is an NCAA Tournament team and can win games in the NCAA Tournament.”
@nbsp;The Big 12 Tournament tips off in Kansas City on March 8 for the first day in a series of games that could help Oklahoma State find a bid to the 2023 NCAA Tournament. The Cowboys are squarely on the bubble, while Oklahoma and Texas Tech will need to win the event to have a chance to play in the Big Dance.
