Darian DeVries, now entering his debut season as Indiana’s head coach, recently addressed the NCAA Tournament exclusion that capped his final year at West Virginia. Despite a 19-13 overall mark, a 10-10 Big 12 finish, and six Quad 1 victories—including five on the road—the Mountaineers were left out of the 2025 field.
Their NET ranking stood at 51. The decision shocked many across college basketball, especially given West Virginia’s strong resume and notable performance in one of the nation’s toughest conferences.
Darian DeVries Calls West Virginia NCAA Snub ‘Really Disappointing’
New Indiana men’s basketball coach DeVries is still coming to terms with how his former team, West Virginia, was left out of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The Mountaineers were not among the teams selected, a decision that left DeVries and his players stunned.
Appearing on CBS Sports’ podcast with analyst Jon Rothstein, DeVries opened up about the emotional rollercoaster that accompanied Selection Sunday.
“To be quite honest with you, I’ve been doing this long enough. You know what it means to be on the bubble,” DeVries said. “Everybody’s disappointed when you don’t get in when you’re one of those last four teams. This year was different though, because there wasn’t really anybody within our circle, certainly, that felt like we weren’t going to get in.”
Darian DeVries NEVER thought that West Virginia was going to be left out of the NCAA Tournament on Selection Sunday. pic.twitter.com/QXH119bKEf
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) June 12, 2025
West Virginia held a private watch party at DeVries’ home with players, families, and administrators. The atmosphere reflected the team’s confidence heading into the selection show.
“That was the last thing on our mind—us not making it. It was more like, are we going to be able to avoid Dayton?” DeVries recalled. “Then it gets later into that bracket and it’s like, uh-oh.”
DeVries realized the numbers didn’t add up as the final region was revealed.
“I knew there were a couple other teams that I felt were probably for sure in, and there weren’t enough spots left,” he said. “To be left out, I thought it was just really disappointing.”
DeVries expressed deep sympathy for his roster, especially the graduating seniors.
“I just felt so bad for our group because we had an awesome group of guys, especially those seniors that don’t get another opportunity,” he said. “They just wanted to play in the NCAA Tournament, and I thought they deserved to do that.”
KEEP READING: Darian DeVries Reveals Unlikely Childhood Connection to Indiana That Could Lead to NCAA Success
Now leading the Hoosiers, DeVries has turned his attention to rebuilding, assembling a transfer class ranked seventh nationally by ESPN. Additions include Sun Belt Player of the Year Tayton Conerway, his son and former WVU guard Tucker DeVries, and A-10 standout Reed Bailey.
“We like the way the roster came together,” he said. “We added a lot of quality shooters, which is a priority for us… They can complement each other on the floor.”
Though he’s moved on to Bloomington, the sting of West Virginia’s exclusion still lingers.
College Sports Network has you covered with the latest news, analysis, insights, and trending stories in football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, and baseball!
