INDIANAPOLIS — Recently hired West Virginia basketball coach Ross Hodge saw his time pulling double duty come to an end on Tuesday night, as North Texas concluded its season with a 69-67 loss to California-Irvine in the NIT semifinals.
The Mean Green concluded their season at 27-9, beating Power 5 schools Minnesota, Oregon State and Hodge’s new Big 12 rival Oklahoma State in the process. The win over the Cowboys came in the NIT quarterfinals and got the Mean Green to the Circle City, forcing Hodge to pull double duty after the Mountaineers hired Hodge last week.
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Hodge was introduced as the Mountaineers’ coach the day after winning in Stillwater, but if his team was distracted Tuesday, it didn’t show. North Texas started the game with a 13-2 run, clearly showing that Hodge’s talk of his team coming together for one final push wasn’t just empty rhetoric.
“You hate to say you’re looking at everything like year-to-year but in some ways, you are,” Hodge said. “You’re trying to give everything you can to that group and that year, and then honestly we all take a step back and everyone kind of has to evaluate what’s best for them.
“If you look at our roster this year, of our eight heavy rotation players, six of them are seniors. And then quite honestly, two of them, you know, you don’t really know if they were intending on coming back or not.”
Ross Hodge, North Texas Finish What They Started
One thing that was never unknown was that Hodge wanted to finish the job in Denton and honor his commitment to his team. In an era where teams routinely turn down smaller tournaments because the coach or players are leaving, the Mean Green never seemed to lose their focus as Hodge committed to Morgantown. Once he returned to Denton, it was business as usual for the team.
“I want to start out by saying thank you to Wren Baker, the athletic director at West Virginia, and Jared Mosley, the athletic director at North Texas for allowing me to do this, as well,” Hodge said after the Mean Green fell short against the Anteaters. “And I think they — they know my heart, obviously, and they know me. There was never any real discussion or any real doubt that I was going to finish what I started with this group.
“It’s not a secret. You know, when you have good, young players nowadays, like you know the pool that they are getting pooled on, if you have success as a coach, you’re going to have opportunities. And that was kind of a message all year long far before anything that came with me is just, hey, let’s be where our feet are and let’s pour everything into this group.”
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The Mean Green showed how focused they were in committing just five turnovers in the loss, compared to 17 miscues for UC Irvine. Their issue was that they went cold at the wrong time, scoring just four points in the final seven minutes of the first half. But focus was never a problem.
“We naturally follow after him,” North Texas guard Atin Wright said. “I personally had no doubt, like he wasn’t going to change when he found out he had got the new job. Like he said, we were all happy for him. He’s a great man, honestly.”
Players Stay Loyal to Ross Hodge, North Texas
North Texas guard Jasper Floyd added a mindset that would be welcome to West Virginia fans to hear after watching Darian DeVries pack up for Indiana, leaving the Mountaineers with yet another rebuild.
“I wasn’t raised like to just step out on somebody just because something happened. That’s just not in me. We tell each other we love each other. It wouldn’t be right for us, like Coach said, that would be a hypocrite.
“You know, to just to quit on this team like that, I don’t — I don’t think that’s the right mindset to have. Just wanted to try to finish something out together with these guys and this team.”
Ross Hodge Stayed Focused to the End
With the Mean Green’s season complete, Hodge will now fully shift his focus to West Virginia basketball. To him, it’s not much of a shift because he was always going to be looking at the transfer portal at this time of year.
“Obviously you get pulled a little different directions, but no different than you would be if you’re at North Texas this time of year,” Hodge said. “You’re recruiting the portal and you’re prepping for games. I wanted to give these guys BI had, and you know, when we told them, they were so incredibly happy for me. It was like tears of joy from them.
“And I told them then: If you see me change my demeanor or not jump on you for not getting on the floor for a loose ball, you need to call me on it, because we’re going to win this thing. I’m thankful for everybody involved that they gave me the opportunity to finish this out. I wish it could have finished with a win, but just an opportunity to do that with these guys one more time.”
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Hodge wrapped up his time in Denton by pointing out a key mindset: that it takes both a coach and an administration working together to achieve what he wants to do on the court. At a time where West Virginia has undergone a sea of change, Hodge’s implicit endorsement of Wren Baker by leaving a situation where he was happy serves as a major mark in Baker’s favor.
“I’ve always said coaches win games and administrations win championships,” Hodge said. “Under Dr. Keller and Jared Mosley’s leadership, I have no doubt in my mind that they will continue to do great things (at North Texas). The people are incredible, man, and what maybe they may lack in numbers or sheer volume, they certainly make up with passion and commitment.”
