ESPN BPI: West Virginia's Chances to Beat No. 7 Kansas Are Slim to None

Darian DeVries' squad enters today's matchup as big road underdogs.
West Virginia University guard Jonathan Powell
West Virginia University guard Jonathan Powell / Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

There's no better way to open up league play than playing arguably the toughest opponent in the conference and in the most difficult venue to play in. That's the task that Darian DeVries and the West Virginia Mountaineers have this afternoon as they open up Big 12 action at No. 7 Kansas.

West Virginia this season

The Mountaineers enter Big 12 play with a surprising record of 9-2. What's maybe more impressive than the record itself is the fact that they've been able to win games without some of its best players. Sure, Tucker DeVries missed three games versus cupcakes, but Eduardo Andre missed a game in the Bahamas, Jayden Stone has yet to play this season, and Amani Hansberry exited the team's last game with an ankle injury. Beating Kansas isn't impossible, but with DeVries and Hansberry questionable, it's going to be a tall ask.

Kansas this season

The Jayhawks have played nearly half of their non-conference schedule against high majors and had a lot of success despite the tough scheduling. They took down North Carolina, Michigan State, Duke, and NC State but lost to Creighton and Missouri. Both of those losses occurred away from Phog Allen Fieldhouse, a place Kansas head coach Bill Self has only lost 18 times during his 22-year tenure.

What the ESPN BPI says

According to the ESPN Basketball Power Index (BPI), West Virginia has just a 14.2% chance to win, while Kansas has an 85.8% chance to come away with the Big 12 opening victory. Just going off of memory here, this seems a tad bit higher than what the BPI typically gives WVU in Lawrence, and I'm curious as to why. The Mountaineers have had better and deeper teams go into the Phog with less than a 10% chance given to them. This one feels like it should be in that 7-10% range.

The Mountaineers and Jayhawks will tip things off at 2 p.m. EST. The action can be streamed live on ESPN+.

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Schuyler Callihan
SCHUYLER CALLIHAN

Publisher of Mountaineers Now on FanNation/Sports Illustrated. Lead recruiting expert and co-host of Between the Eers, Walk Thru GameDay Show, Mountaineers Now Postgame Show, and In the Gun Podcast.