In 2004–05, Beilein's team entered the 2005 Big East Tournament with an 18–9 record as the eighth seed and as a team on the bubble for the 2005 NCAA Tournament. The team won its opening-round game against number nine seed Providence 82–59, its second-round game against number one seed 78–72, and its third-round game against number four 78–72. West Virginia lost the conference tournament finals to Syracuse 68–59, but it earned a seven seed in the NCAA tournament against number ten seed of the Missouri Valley Conference. The loss gave Beilein his fifth loss in as many games against his mentor Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, who had helped him acquire each of his first three Division I coaching positions. In the NCAA tournament, West Virginia beat Creighton 63–61 with a defensive stop and fast break dunk in the final five seconds. West Virginia then defeated the number two seed Wake Forest team led by Chris Paul in double overtime 111–105. In the Sweet Sixteen round, West Virginia defeated Bobby Knight's number six seeded Texas Tech 65–60. In the elite eight round, they lost 93–85 in overtime to Rick Pitino's number four seeded Louisville, who were led by Taquan Dean and Larry O'Bannon. With the three wins in 2005, Beilein raised his career NCAA Tournament record to 4–3.