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Bob Huggins weighs in on “slimy creatures” and the transfer portal

Good morning! This is the Shotgun Throwdown, your daily West Virginia sports roundup.

West Virginia v Villanova Photo by Elsa/Getty Images

Welcome, By-Godders, to The Shotgun/Throwdown, WVU’s best place for sports links, information, sophomoric humor, and daily distractions.

Basketball

Huggins provides roster updates and sounds alarm about NCAA changes

College basketball is running rampant with excessive transferring and players having unrealistic professional aspirations. Earlier this week, West Virginia men’s basketball coach Bob Huggins had a lot to say about these topics, “You don’t know who is coming and who is staying. It is hard right now to be able to say what your definite roster is because you don’t know. We’ve got four guys that are looking at the draft. You don’t know where that ends up. You don’t know how many slimy creatures that are called agents are slithering around and promising the world and not being able to deliver anything.”

WVU men’s hoops earns final ranking in AP, coaches polls

The West Virginia men’s basketball team checked into the final rankings of the season in the top 25. The Mountaineers checked in at #13 in the last Associated Press rankings of 2020-21, with another spot at #18 in the coaches’ poll. This is WVU’s sixth time finishing in the top 25 in the last eight seasons.

WVU’s Carey recognized in 2021 WBCA Victory Club

West Virginia women’s basketball coach Mike Carey has been recognized as a member of the 2021 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Victory Club. The honor is bestowed annually on each WBCA-member head coach who achieves a milestone of 200, 300, 400, 500 or more career victories during the current season.

West Virginia Athletics

WVU Sits at No. 5 in Latest Rankings

The West Virginia women’s soccer team checked in at #5 in this week’s United Soccer Coaches National Poll. The 10-2 Mountaineers moved down one spot in the newly released poll, despite earning a 1-0 win over then-#10 Virginia last week. West Virginia is once again one of three Big 12 teams featured in the poll, joining #3 TCU and #18 Oklahoma State.

Mountaineer Women Conclude Regular Season Spring Slate at No. 12 Virginia

The #5 West Virginia women’s soccer team will wrap up regular season play on Saturday at #12 Virginia. It is the sequel to last Saturday’s 1-0 Mountaineer victory in Morgantown that boosted their overall record to 10-2. WVU got a late goal from Isabella Sibley against the Cavaliers to give it a second straight victory over a top 10-ranked team.

WVU baseball falls to Pittsburgh in Backyard Brawl

The West Virginia baseball team’s losing streak extended to three games with a 5-1 loss against Pittsburgh in the Backyard Brawl on Tuesday evening. WVU only totaled eight hits in the loss and starting pitcher Carlson Reed had a rough outing, as he allowed five hits and four runs in 2.1 innings.

Etienne Papineau returns to WVU golf lineup

West Virginia fifth-year golfer Etienne Papineau has been medically cleared to return to the lineup. It was announced in September that Papineau would miss the entire 2020-21 season with knee surgery, but he will return to the lineup next Monday and Tuesday at the Mountaineer Invitational.

Women’s tennis suspends play

West Virginia University Director of Athletics and Associate Vice President Shane Lyons announced today that the WVU tennis team will suspend play for the remainder of the 2021 spring season due to not meeting the minimum qualification numbers for competition.

Mountaineer Round-up: Gymnastics wraps season, golf prepares for Mountaineer Invitational

Here is what happened over the last week, and what is coming up for the West Virginia gymnastics, tennis, swimming and diving, track and field, golf, and rowing teams.

Around the Big 12

Baylor beatdown: Bears win title, hang 86-70 loss on Gonzaga

The Baylor men’s basketball team won the 2021 National Championship on Monday by destroying formerly undefeated Gonzaga. The Bears had a fantastic start to the game and never looked back. BU junior Jared Butler led the team with 22 points and seven assists. Freshman guard Jalen Suggs led the Bulldogs with 22 points and two steals.

Texas Tech introduces alumnus Adams as new basketball coach

Texas Tech’s search for its new men’s basketball coach did not take long and did not have to go far. Mark Adams, the TTU graduate who was born about 40 miles from the Lubbock campus and spent the past five seasons as a Red Raiders assistant, was introduced Tuesday night as their new head coach.

Loyola Chicago’s Porter Moser hired as Oklahoma men’s basketball coach

Loyola Chicago’s Porter Moser has been hired as Oklahoma men’s basketball coach. Moser has been one of the hottest mid-major coaches in the country since leading Loyola Chicago to the Final Four in 2018 and a Sweet 16 appearance this season.

OSU, TCU and UT Earn Week 7 Awards

Oklahoma State’s Christian Encarnacion-Strand was named the Big 12 Player of the Week, while TCU sophomore Austin Krob earned Pitcher of the Week distinction. Texas’ Ivan Melendez and TCU’s Brayden Taylor shared Newcomer of the Week honors.

Travis Goff Named Director of Athletics at Kansas

The University of Kansas has selected Travis Goff to serve as its next director of athletics. Goff currently serves as the deputy director of athletics and assistant vice president at Northwestern University.

Around the NCAA

The March Madness pain index — Whose 2021 NCAA tournament losses hurt the worst?

Every college basketball team’s exit from the NCAA Tournament has its own distinctive story, but some are undoubtedly tougher to swallow than others, so it is time to quantify the disappointment. Where did West Virginia’s upset loss to Syracuse rank amongst the other tournament losses? Here are the worst and most painful losses in this year’s March Madness.

Arizona Wildcats fire men’s basketball coach Sean Miller

Sean Miller has been fired as the head coach of the Arizona men’s basketball team. The program has been entangled in a federal investigation into corruption in college basketball. Former assistant coach Emanuel Richardson pleaded guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to commit bribery.

Spring football 2021: Juiciest QB competitions, coaching situations, transfers

Which spring quarterback battles are the most intriguing? Which coaching situation are the most interesting? Those questions and more are answered in this inside look into college football’s spring activities.

NBA mock draft 2021: Who is rising and falling after NCAA tournament?

Here is SB Nation’s latest projection of the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft following the conclusion of the NCAA Tournament.

Unwritten rules are made to be broken! How a new generation of players is shifting MLB’s culture

Although it has been a long time coming, and still has a long way to go, the game of baseball is evolving. Here is what is driving that, seemingly overnight, change.

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