WVU Assistant Erik Martin: "It's National Championship or Bust"

High expectations are coming from the West Virginia basketball coaching staff

Just one year ago, West Virginia found itself in a world of trouble trying to find a way to be successful without Jevon Carter and Daxter Miles Jr. Things spiraled out of control quickly and they were unable to ever get it going, finishing with a 15-21 record and missing out on the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2013-14 season.

Bob Huggins and his staff removed some of those players and brought in guys that had a better attitude and a will to win and boy, did it show. Just one year removed from missing out on March Madness, the Mountaineers got off to a blistering hot start in the 2019-20 season, which included a win over then No. 2 Ohio State and No. 5 Baylor. Freshman big man Oscar Tshiebwe and sophomore Derek Culver were a handful and then some for opposing teams and helped pave the way to leading the country in offensive rebounds. Unfortunately, West Virginia missed out on the NCAA Tournament once again, but you can thank COVID-19 for that as the tournament was canceled.

As we sit just a handful of months away from the 2020-21 season starting (hopefully), expectations are through the roof for this squad. Last week, ESPN college basketball analyst Fran Fraschilla said that West Virginia is a "top ten team", while Joe Lunardi has the Mountaineers as a projected No. 3 seed in the East Region in his latest brakectology.

Now, WVU assistant Erik Martin is solidifying those projections with his latest tweet.

I couldn’t be more excited about workouts tomorrow. I feel like a kid on Christmas Eve. It’s been 4 months since I was with my family/team, and this could be the most talented team we’ve had at WVU in my 13 years here. National Championship or Bust! Let’s get it!!!!!

— Erik Martin (@HCEmartinSCSU) July 20, 2020

When you see this from Martin, it's hard not to agree with him. I mean, West Virginia is returning arguably the best frontcourt tandem in the country and to make matters worse for opponents, they added Isaiah Cottrell and Seny Ndiaye in the 2020 class. Ndiaye is likely to redshirt in 2020, but Cottrell will be a key big off the bench and should see a fair amount of playing time. In just one season, the Mountaineers went from one of the youngest teams in the country to one of the more experienced groups. 

Looking at the teams on West Virginia's schedule, it's hard to find many teams that will match up well with them. Huggins' squad is not only big in size, but has a very deep bench - something most teams don't have. National championship or bust may be setting the bar too high, but with the talent on this roster, it's hard to not think that way.

Do you agree with coach Martin? Should the expectations be national championship or bust for West Virginia? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!

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