WVU should secure coveted NCAA host seed with exciting Big 12 Championship win

The West Virginia Mountaineers have secured their first Big 12 Tournament Championship since 2016, and with the triumph, they'll likely be able to bring the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament to their home court.

While nothing will be certain until the field is released next weekend, most analysts are now claiming WVU women's basketball has done enough to climb into the Top 16 overall seeds in the tournament, guaranteeing at least a No. 4 seed.

And that's quite important, as the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament allows those top four seeds in each region to host the opening weekend, giving at least one (and hopefully two) home games in the Big Dance.

Why the West Virginia Mountaineers will likely host an NCAA Tournament game

Charlie Creme, who serves as ESPN's women's basketball bracketologist, stated on Sunday that he believed the Mountaineers would be moving into the Top 16 seeds and earn a host site for the NCAA Tournament. And he's not the only one espousing the opinion.

Talia Goodman, a national women's basketball analyst with On3, had already called for the Mountaineers to earn a 4-seed after they downed Colorado in the semifinals of the tournament , reiterated her belief on social media that the Mountaineers should host after their win.

And she was backed up by Big 12 Conference women's basketball analyst and former Division 1 assistant coach Rachel Galligan, who claimed she believes West Virginia needs to host on opening weekend. No questions asked.

The Mountaineers racked up their fourth Quad 1 win of the season and moved to a combined 13-6 in games against Quad 1 and Quad 2 opponents with the victory. The Mountaineers entered the game on Sunday ranked 18th in the NET Rankings, 15th in the Wins Above Bubble (WAB) Rankings, and 15th in the AP Top 25.