So throughout the season, I look ahead at WVU’s schedule and jot down what I suspect the outcomes will be. Needless to say, I’ve changed my mind a few times in the month or so I’ve been doing this.

Just last week, I figured that as WVU played toward the NCAA Tournament, it might play three or four more games against ranked teams. Now I see one, maybe two. I thought the Mountaineers could win six of the final 10 regular season games. I still see six, but it’s not the same six. 

A game at Villanova, for example, doesn’t look that intimidating now. And what about Pitt? The first of two games is Thursday at the Petersen Events Center, but the natural wears of the season are beginning to take a toll on the thin Panthers.

Conversely, Connecticut looks like it could beat anyone and that home game against Seton Hall is tricky.

This is what happens is this league and now that its 16-team membership plays an 18-game schedule, it’s going to be more severe. Halfway through the conference season, WVU is 5-4. At 16-6 overall, is another 5-4 good enough for the NCAA Tournament? I’d suggest 6-3 and anything better will be enough, but for every lost at home, the Mountaineers must win two on the road. 

But here’s the thing: Hasn’t WVU played much better on the road lately? Maybe the season’s defining moment came Saturday at Providence when Cam Thoroughman engineered an unlikely rally from a 12-point deficit in the first half. The last time the Mountaineers looked that confident was when they were cruising in the second half at South Florida.

The (potential) trouble for WVU is that five of the season’s final nine games are on the road. WVU must beat St. John’s and DePaul and probably two of the UConn-Pitt-Villanova trio. A month ago, that was asking a lot.