By SAM LANCE
West Virginia will be moving on from interim head coach Josh Eilert and will conduct a search for its next head basketball coach, per release. Eilert finished the 2023-24 season with a 9-23 overall record, the program’s fewest wins since 2001-02.
“As I shared last summer following our initial coaching transition, we decided to wait until the conclusion of the 2023-24 season before embarking on a full national search,” said West Virginia University Vice President and Director of Athletics Wren Baker. “Upon our return to Morgantown from the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship, I met with Coach Eilert, the coaching staff and the team to let them know we are moving forward with our search plans. All of Mountaineer Nation owes a debt of gratitude to Coach Eilert for his leadership during a challenging season, as he and his staff faced all obstacles with class and professionalism.”
Baker continued.
“We are now focused on our collective future, and I am excited about what comes next. We compete in the best men’s basketball conference in America, we have incredible fans and supporters, we have a history of success and we have a commitment to winning. I am confident we will engage a strong pool of candidates and identify the right leader for our program. As I shared with our student-athletes, we will move deliberately but as swiftly as we can in the days ahead.”
West Virginia’s season was ended on Tuesday in the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City by Cincinnati. The Mountaineers gave up a 16-point lead to fall to the Bearcats, 90-85.
“The moment I got the job, it’s been filled with challenges,” Eilert said. “Problems to solve. Issues to deal with. It’s just been nonstop whether it’s been internal or external issues. It’s just been quite the rollercoaster. You know what you do? You wake up every day and try to figure out how you attack those issues, work out solutions. We got to the finish line, certainly not where we want to be from a record standpoint but I think everybody learned and grew as humans, as individuals.”
Eilert has been with the West Virginia since 2007. He started as a video coordinator for the Mountaineers and was promoted to Director of Basketball Operations in 2013 before becoming an assistant coach from 2016-2023. Before West Virginia, Eilert served as a graduate assistant to Kansas State (2005-07). He also played two seasons at Kansas State as a player after transferring up from Cloud County Community College.
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