Virginia
Bob Huggins resigns at West Virginia: Hall of Fame coach intends to retire in wake of DUI arrest
West Virginia coach Bob Huggins has resigned as Mountaineers men’s basketball coach after he was arrested Friday night in Pittsburgh for driving under the influence of alcohol. Huggins, who informed the team of his impending resignation Saturday night, intends to retire.
“My recent actions do not represent the values of the University or the leadership expected in this role,” Huggins wrote. “While I have always tried to represent our University with honor, I have let all of you – and myself – down. I am solely responsible for my conduct and sincerely apologize to the University community – particularly to the student-athletes, coaches and staff in our program. I must do better, and I plan to spend the next few months focused on my health and my family so that I can be the person they deserve.”
WVU president E. Gordon Gee and athletic director Wren Baker released a joint statement on Huggins: “We support his decision so that he can focus on his health and family. On behalf of West Virginia University, we share our appreciation for his service to our University, our community and our state. During his time as a student-athlete, assistant coach and head coach, Coach Huggins devoted himself to his players, to our student body, to our fans and alumni and to all West Virginians. His contributions will always be a part of our history. In the days ahead, we will focus on supporting the student-athletes in our men’s basketball program and solidifying leadership for our program.”
Huggins, 69, is one of the biggest figures in college basketball with two Final Fours and more than four decades of coaching to his name. Until his ouster, he was the active leader in Division I wins (934) as his head-coaching career dated back to Walsh College in 1980. Huggins was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2022, an achievement many in the basketball community considered long overdue, even in spite of Huggins never reaching the national championship game.
The brash, blue-collar coach has not been without troubles and controversies over the years. Most recently, he escaped job termination after going on Cincinnati radio and making homophobic and disparaging comments against gay people and Catholics. Huggins quickly apologized and was sanctioned by West Virginia. The school suspended him for three games to start the upcoming season, and he agreed to undergo counseling for issues tied to his inexcusable remarks. Huggins also had his contract reworked so that he was only on a one-year deal moving forward.
All of that is now moot with a Hall of Fame career ending in embarrassment flanked by disturbing details in Huggins’ arrest report from Friday night.
Huggins’ blood alcohol level upon his DUI arrest read .210, nearly three times the legal limit, according to the Pittsburgh Police Department. It’s an intoxication level so dangerous that some adults could be hospitalized if they reach it. Empty beer cans and bottles were found in trash bags on the passenger side floor and in the trunk of Huggins’ school-issued SUV. An empty cooler that appeared to have been recently used was also in the vehicle.
His arrest came around 8:30 p.m. ET. Huggins was initially spotted outside his car by an officer due to his GMC Yukon Denali blocking traffic after shredding a tire. Huggins was unable to explain why his tire was destroyed and could not tell police in what city he was located.
“Huggins could not tell us how he got to Pittsburgh,” the police wrote in the complaint.
Huggins provided police with a receipt from a Burger King in Washington, Pennsylvania, which sits 28 miles southwest from where he was arrested. The Burger King receipt was timestamped from seven hours earlier in the day. When questioned by police, Huggins could not detail what he’d been doing in the time between and didn’t understand what police were asking him.
Huggins also told police he believed he was in “Columbus,” presumably in reference to Columbus, Ohio, a city nearly three hours and 185 miles west from Pittsburgh.
“Officer Bertan asked Huggins approximately 10 times where he was actually at, and he never once responded with the current city he was in,” the arrest report states.
Huggins failed multiple field sobriety tests and was released on bond Saturday. He has a preliminary hearing forthcoming, the date not yet having been determined.
The DUI arrest is the second of Huggins’ career, the first coming in 2004 when he coached Cincinnati. That incident included dashcam video showing him vomiting out of his window after being stopped by police. He resigned from his Bearcats post less than a year later.
Huggins, a West Virginia alumnus and Morgantown native, was hired by the school in 2007. He took the Mountaineers to the Final Four in 2010 and made 11 NCAA Tournaments, including last season. Huggins won 345 games in 16 seasons at his alma mater.
It remains unclear if lead WVU assistant Ron Everhart will be promoted to interim head coach.
Sources previously indicated that the 2023-24 campaign would likely be Huggins’ last. Now, instead of a subdued send-off, Huggins leaves West Virginia covered in humiliation. It’s an infamous end, but one entirely of his own doing.
A Virginia woman has been arrested and charged in connection with a murder-for-hire plot, according to the Henry County Sheriff’s office.
Gennevieve McGhee, 44, was allegedly captured via audio and video evidence in the meticulous planning of a murder for hire, the sheriff’s office said.
McGhee is accused of meeting with a confidential source at her residence in Ridgeway, Virginia. The source was acting under law enforcement direction and utilizing a recording device to capture evidence.
TEXAS INFLUENCER SENTENCED TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON FOR MURDER-FOR-HIRE PLOT
Henry County Sheriff’s Office charged Gennevieve McGhee, 44, with criminal solicitation of murder following an investigation that revealed her alleged involvement in planning a murder for hire. (Henry County Sheriff’s Office)
She allegedly discussed detailed instructions on payment arrangements and instructions for carrying out a robbery and murder.
McGhee is charged with criminal solicitation of murder and conspiracy to commit a felony.
INDIAN INTELLIGENCE OFFICIAL CHARGED IN MURDER-FOR-HIRE PLOT ON SIKH SEPARATIST LEADER IN NEW YORK CITY
Gennevieve McGhee, 44, is charged with criminal solicitation of murder and conspiracy to commit a felony. (iStock)
McGhee was taken into custody by deputies from the Henry County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday and is being held at the Henry County Adult Detention Center with no bond.
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The case remains under review by the Henry County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.
Additional information on the case is not available at this time, officials said.
The West Virginia Mountaineers (4-2) will meet the No. 24 Arizona Wildcats in the third place game of the Battle 4 Atlantis midseason tournament for the sixth meeting between the two programs.
West Virginia vs. Arizona Series History
Arizona leads 2-3
Last Meeting: March 28, 2008 (NCAA Tournament) WVU 75-65
When: Friday, November 29
Location: Paradise Island, Bahamas, Imperial Arena (3,900)
Tip-off: 3:00 p.m. EST
Stream: ESPN2
Announcers: Beth Mowins and Debbie Antonelli
Radio: Tony Caridi (PBP), Brad Howe (analyst) Mountaineer Sports Network from Learfield IMG College(Radio affiliates)
WVU Game Notes
– West Virginia was scheduled to play in the 2020 Battle 4 Atlantis. The tournament was moved to Sioux Falls, S.D., due to COVID, and the Mountaineers won the renamed Bad Boy Mowers Crossover Classic.
– WVU is 45-16 in in-season tournaments since 2007.
– With a win over No. 3 Gonzaga, WVU defeated a Top 5 AP team for the second consecutive season. Last season, the Mountaineers downed No. 3 Kansas in Morgantown, 91-85.
– Prior to the overtime win over No. 3 Gonzaga, WVU had lost six straight overtime games.
– This is WVU’s fourth trip outside the United States and Puerto Rico to play a regular season game. WVU played in Cancun in 2013 and 2019 and opened the season in Germany in the 2017 Armed Forces Classic.
– West Virginia is the only team in the country that has two players on the same team who averaged more than 20 points per game from last season — Tucker DeVries (21.6 ppg) and Jayden Stone (20.8 ppg)
– West Virginia is 201-55 against nonconference teams in regular season games in the last 21 seasons.
– The Mountaineers have posted a winning nonconference record in 31 of the last 32 seasons.
– WVU is 265-99 in its last 362 games against unranked teams, including winners of 148 of its last 180 at the WVU Coliseum.
– This is the 116th season and 122nd year overall for WVU basketball, which began in 1903.
– Darian DeVries, who led Drake to six consecutive 20-win seasons and has a career .731 winning percentage as a head coach, was named the 23rd head men’s basketball coach at West Virginia University on March 24, 2024.
– DeVries has a record of 154-57 (.731) in seven seasons as a head coach, including a 59-16 (.787) mark in the last two-plus seasons.
– This past August, the men’s basketball team went to Italy for a 10-day tour and won all three of its games against international competition.
– West Virginia returns just 2.8 percent of its scoring from last season’s team (Ofri Naveh).
– The Mountaineers are led by a pair of transfers in Tucker DeVries (Drake) and Javon Small (Oklahoma State). Last season, DeVries was named an Associated Press All-American Honorable Mention selection, while Small earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention honors.
– In addition, Eduardo Andre (Fresno State), Joseph Yesufu (Washington State), Sencire Harris (Illinois), Amani Hansberry (Illinois) and Jayden Stone (Detroit Mercy) will all see considerable action this season.
– Tucker DeVries was named to the 20-member Julius Erving Preseason Watch List, giving annually to the nation’s top small forward.
– Tucker DeVries was named to the preseason Naismith Trophy Men’s College Player of the Year Watch List.
– Tucker DeVries was named to the John R. Wooden Award Top 50 Preseason Watch List.
West Virginia got off to a hot start at the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis by knocking off undefeated Gonzaga 86-78 in overtime in their first-round matchup. The Mountaineers have received strong performances to begin the season from two upperclassman transfers: Javon Small and Tucker DeVries.
With each player delivering standout performances, it’s time to start considering them seriously as draft prospects.
Let’s take a closer look at their outings in this big win and dive into their seasons as a whole up to this point.
Tucker DeVries finished this game with a stuffed stat line of 16 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and four blocks. This level of versatility clearly illustrates the type of player he is, as he looked solid in nearly every aspect of the game. He has good positional size at 6-foot-7 and plays with a very high IQ on both ends of the floor. His defensive impact was especially noticeable, as he consistently made impactful plays, including a steal that led to free throws to tie the game at the end of regulation. DeVries finished the second half on a 5-0 run, which gave West Virginia momentum to capture the game in overtime.
DeVries has had a solid all-around season leading up to this performance, averaging 13.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, two assists, 2.5 steals and 1.3 blocks, with shooting splits of 36.6%/40.7%/81.3%. If he were to be drafted following this season, it would likely be in the second round, but his versatile play style is very promising.
Javon Small led the Mountaineers in scoring during this upset victory, contributing 31 points on impressive shooting splits of 50%/40%/81.8%. In addition to his scoring, he also grabbed seven rebounds, dished out two assists and added one steal and one block. Small is a quick and slippery guard who stayed in attack mode throughout the game, translating well into fast-break opportunities. Rarely staying in one spot on offense, Small kept the floor spaced and forced his defender to fight through traffic to keep up with him. His offensive approach was patient as he waited for his defender to get off balance before attacking.
Before this game, Small had averaged 15.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, four assists and three steals. He leads the Mountaineers in points, assists, and steals, while providing a noticeable spark on a nightly basis. Small is now at his third school in four years, with similar statistics in each of his previous two seasons. As an older guard, it is not guaranteed that he will be drafted, but if this level of productivity continues throughout the season, he may receive an opportunity to prove himself at the next level.
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