Reflecting on West Virginia's 2020-21 Season of Highs, Lows, & a Bright Future

West Virginia ended their season campaign on a heartbreaking 75-72 loss to Syracuse, but what can we take away from such a wild season? Let's dive into my initial thoughts of the Mountaineers 19-10 season.

West Virginia ended their season campaign on a heartbreaking 75-72 loss to Syracuse, but what can we take away from such a wild season? Let's dive into my initial thoughts of the Mountaineers 19-10 season.

First of all, the Mountaineers made tremendous strides throughout the COVID-infested season. You have to give it up to every athlete that grinded it out and fought through all the adversity that this year had to offer. 

It's tough enough to perform well during such a season. Then, you add in Tshiebwe's departure, Huggins recreating the identity of his team midseason and all the schedule ups and downs. In all of that, the Mountaineers found ways to be successful which adds to that "wow" factor. 

I know how passionate this state is about West Virginia sports, and I know it's tough to endure so many disappointments and coming up short in another tournament. West Virginia loves to win, but who doesn't?!

Nonetheless, I think a lot of people forget to sit back and realize just how much these players have taken on this year, including adding the weight of the entire state on their shoulders. It's not an excuse, but it's something to think about. 

At the beginning of the basketball season, I had extremely high hopes for these guys, as did most folks. From Huggins' high praises to the attention of the media it was all setting up to be "the season." But if I'm honest, why? 

Yes, Huggins was returning a lot of starters and a lot of shooters, but it would only be the second year with all these guys playing together. Culver and Matthews Jr. are the only two players who have been playing together in Morgantown longer than two years. 

I mean, I can understand the high hopes, but I just don't understand giving up all that hope after the loss to Syracuse. 

This team ran into a squad that caught fire and they might have barely made it into the tournament, but Syracuse and Boeheim are certainly not a slouch team.

My point is, the hype should continue to carry over into next season. See the return of Sherman and Osabuohien, and a team that's now been together for three years. That's a scary championship-caliber team. 

The biggest factor of this team that was such a letdown was its defense, obviously. We didn't see this bad of defense from them last year. This was a squad that had a top defense in the country just a season ago, so I'm not entirely sure what changed. 

What I think will end up being a blessing in disguise is this loss to Syracuse. 

I think that loss has already made up the minds of Sherman and Osabuohien to return, and these guys will be ready to run through every obstacle in 2021-22. Do you know why I think that? Do you know who that team will mirror? Baylor. 

Baylor used a lot of experience and toughness to win a lot of games, and become a number one seed in this year's tournament. They've been good the past few years, but they were REALLY good this year. 

The Mountaineers are very similar to the Bears in many aspects, and that's what I think Mountaineer fans need to pay attention to. If you want some more confidence for this team's success next season, then look no further than Baylor.

Not to mention, by that time Isaiah Cottrell will be back on the court, Taj Thweatt will be providing valuable minutes, Seny N'diaye will have some experience, Kedrian Johnson will have another year under his belt and Kobe Johnson will be in the locker room as well. 

Of course, all those additions will add to an already high-powered team of McBride, McNeil, Bridges, Matthews, and Culver. Especially, with Bridges having such an impressive outing in his first season. 

Everyone can be quick to become upset after losing, that's just what happens when you're passionate. Especially, getting knocked out of the tournament when the path seemed so clear, but I think it's just the beginning for these guys. 

Let me add another perspective.

This season, the Mountaineers were 5-7 in top 25 matchups and they were consistently ranked inside the top 10 all year. In addition, they had all this success while giving up three-point shots at will and struggling heavily on defense. 

The three teams that gave this Mountaineer team trouble (Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Baylor) all shot the three-ball extremely well, and they struggled to maintain good positioning on defense giving up many blow-by layups. 

But if we know anything about Bob Huggins, we know he will fix this defense, and those same teams will be losing a lot of their experience next season. 

This is a hungry group of guys. You can see it in their post-game reactions, their post-game comments, and in their absolute will to stay in these games that could've easily been ripped away from them. 

These guys could've given up and lost to Texas Tech, but Deuce McBride put the team on his shoulders and won that game. They could've thrown in the towel earlier in the season when they went down by 19 against Oklahoma State, but they showed heart and gritted that one out as well. 

I know of many games from seasons past where West Virginia would've lost some of the close games they pulled out this year. I know of many times they were blown out and gave up. This year, they proved they will not quit and proved that they are one of the top teams in the country.

It was just another year of learning for them, and I know all of Mountaineer nation hates to hear that. But the best teacher sometimes is failure. I think you will see a very mature team next season, and one that has a top defense in the country to pair with a lethal offense. 

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