MORGANTOWN — Basketball fans in Morgantown won’t have to wait long to watch West Virginia recruits Oscar Tshiebwe and Miles McBride team up for the first time.
The national game of the 30th annual Scott Brown Little General Classic is making its way to University High at 2 p.m. on April 14, a change from its usual destination in Beckley.
The Beckley Convention Center will still host the all-star game between the state’s Class A seniors against the Class AA seniors on April 13 — Trinity seniors Briston Bennett and Daniel Woods will compete in that game — but game director Bob Bolen said there were several reasons to hold the second game in Morgantown.
“To be honest, having Oscar and Miles teaming up in Morgantown sounded like a good idea,” Bolen said.
Bolen explained that Tshiebwe and McBride both had prior commitments that would keep them from playing Saturday in Beckley, so the game was moved to the next day at UHS.
Tshiebwe, a five-star recruit from Kennedy Catholic (Pa.) is participating in the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Ore. on April 12, while McBride is playing in the Ohio-Kentucky All-Star Game the same day.
“Oscar isn’t flying back to Pennsylvania until that Saturday and Miles isn’t getting home from his game until that Saturday,” Bolen said. “Both kids are going to drive to West Virginia on Sunday [the day of the game] and it’s easier for them to drive to Morgantown.”
Tshiebwe, a 6-foot-9 power forward, averaged 23.5 points and 15 rebounds as a senior and played in the McDonald’s All-American game. Kennedy Catholic won the Pennsylvania Class 6A state title this season.
McBride, a 6-1 point guard, helped Moeller win the Ohio Division I state championship the past two seasons. He averaged 14 points and 4.1 assists as a senior.
They will be coached by University High’s Joe Schmidle, who will be coaching for the third consecutive year and he coached past WVU recruits Jordan McCabe, Trey Doomes, Derek Culver and Teddy Allen in those games. Doomes and Allen have since transferred from West Virginia.
“For me, I think a lot of the fun is getting to know those guys and to get to know what kind of kid they are,” Schmidle said. “I always tried to figure out how they’ll fit in at West Virginia.
“Jordan was an absolutely fantastic kid and Derek was great, too. Trey was a really great kid, but things just didn’t work out for him. I’ve heard nothing but great things about Oscar, so I’m excited to see him and I’m sure the people of Morgantown will be excited to see him, too.”
Tshiebwe and McBride will be joined by several local players, including Morgantown High’s Cam Selders, University’s Rodney Bucklew and Joel Robertson of Trinity.
Mattia Acunzo, a teammate of Tshiebwe at Kennedy Catholic is also on the team. Acunzo is signed at Toledo.
Fairmont Senior coach David Retton will coach the opposing team that will include three standouts from Huntington Prep, including Louisville signee Quinn Slazinski, as well as Morehead State commit Anderson Mirambeaux of Teays Valley Christian.
“Oscar is one of the few five-star guys West Virginia has been able to bring in,” said Bolen, who was an assistant at East Tennessee State for two seasons and the former head coach at Mountain State College in Beckley, who won the 2004 NAIA national championship. “I think the people in this state deserve a chance to see him play before he gets to college.”
The game will include a dunk contest and 3-point shootout at 2 p.m., with the game following those contests.
Tickets are $8 and will only be available at the door the day of the game. No pre-sale tickets will be available, according to UHS athletic director Jeff Bailey.
ROSTERS
Employers’ Innovative Network
Coach
Joe Schmidle, University High
Players
Oscar Tshiebwe, Kennedy Catholic (Pa.) (signed with West Virginia)
Miles McBride, Moeller (Ohio) (signed with West Virginia)
Mattia Acunzo, Kennedy Catholic (Pa.) (signed with Toledo)
Rodney Bucklew, University High
Bunky Brown, George Washington
Keandra King, Wheeling Park
Cam Selders, Morgantown
Seth Fallon, Parkersburg South
Devin Collins, Chapmanville
Greg Zummo, Notre Dame
Joel Robertson, Trinity
Tanner Kennedy, Robert C. Byrd
Midstate Automotive
Coach
David Retton, Fairmont Senior
Players
Quinn Slazinski, Huntington Prep (signed with Louisville)
Alex Dutranoy, Huntington Prep
Greg Tribble, Huntington Prep
Harry Morrice, Beckley Prep
Anderson Mirambeaux, Teays Valley Christian (committed to Morehead State)
Mason Shiflett, Teays Valley Christian
Steven Verplanken, Teays Valley Christian
Bryce Radford, Woodrow Wilson
Danny Bickey, Woodrow Wilson
Joe Muto, Hurricane
Cavonte Duncan, Capital
Dasalis Jones, Fairmont Senior
FOLLOW on Twitter @bigjax3211
