While the 2024-25 season is still young, with more than blank games to go in the regular season, one coach from the Big 12 Conference has starred, at least in the eyes of ESPN’s Fran Fraschilla.
After an incredible start to his first year in Morgantown, West Virginia’s Darian DeVries has flown up Big 12 coaching ranks as his team has quickly become a serious title contender without the help of one of their best players, Tucker DeVries.
“I watched the Iowa State-West Virginia tape this morning,” Fraschilla said. “I’ve always been a fan of Javon Small. He is getting his due. But the coaching job that I’m watching, offensively and defensively, is National Coach of the Year-worthy by Coach DeVries. They are heading to the NCAA tournament at this point.”
West Virginia, 13-4 overall, earned their first stop in the AP Top 25 this season after a major upset win vs. No. 2 Iowa State. The win became their fourth Top 25 win in 2024-25, with wins over No. 3 Gonzaga, No. 24 Arizona, No. 7 Kansas, and No. 2 Iowa State. They hold a 4-2 record in league play, with their two losses coming against No. 10 Houston and Arizona.
The Mountaineers are led by Big 12 Player of the Year candidate Javon Small, who leads the conference in scoring with 19.8 points per game on 43.5% shooting from the field, alongside 5.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game.
With the 13-4 start to his career in Morgantown, DeVries holds an all-time record of 163-59, a career winning percentage of .734%.
