Over the past week, college basketball has been abuzz with a Colorado court case ending with an injunction essentially granting all college athletes from the Class of 2022 who have played four seasons of college basketball an additional year of eligibility.
That opens the door for the West Virgina Mountaineers to finalize their roster. There is technically one roster opening at the moment, but transfer portal acquisition Javan Buchanan had an NCAA waiver denied for a fifth season as well.
Now, Buchanan, as well as one former WVU star from the Class of 2022 who played four years in four seasons are coming together to take a significant step toward playing this season for the Mountaineers.
2 WVU basketball stars file lawsuit against the NCAA
Buchanan and Brenen Lorient, who played last season four the Mountaineers to exhaust his fourth season of eligibility in his fourth year at the college level, filed a lawsuit on Monday in the US District Court of Northern West Virginia – a court which has previously granted Jimmori Robinson and RaeQuan Battle eligibility for the Mountaineers in similar cases.
A new five-for-five lawsuit has been filed in federal court by two would-be West Virginia basketball players, Brenen Lorient and Javan Buchanan.
— Sam C. Ehrlich (@samcehrlich) August 4, 2026
As with other similar cases, it alleges the NCAA's failure to give them a fifth year under the new rules violates a variety of laws. pic.twitter.com/WK99v6Uq1X
Despite the fact that both are covered to play in the ruling from the Colorado case, the two seem to have filed a separate complaint for injunction in case the Colorado case is appealed an overturned, with the Buchanan/Lorient joint lawsuit going beyond the anti-trust claims from the Colorado case and also invoking state claims which have successfully won lawsuits.
They are also seeking injunctive relief over the transfer portal provisions that would prevent either from transferring if eligibility is approved – so while nothing has yet indicated this to be the case, this could end with Lorient (or Buchana, though this seems even less likely) transferring. But so far, the intent seems to be both playing for West Virginia.
This proves the first major indication that Lorient is interested in gaining another year of eligibility, and the fact both are filing together seems like a good sign that both intend to return to the Mountaineers.
Securing Buchanan ensure Hodge's planned roster is fully in tact, while Lorient would be a major boost to the rotation who provides Big 12 starting experience at West Virginia and multiple years playing in Hodge's system. And this week's filing is a major step toward getting them on the hardwood in Morgantown this fall.
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