MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The University High boys’ basketball team is powering through the early part of the season, opening with four-straight wins and rising to No. 4 in the latest Associated Press poll.
It hasn’t been easy, though. The Hawks (5-0) nearly escaped what would have been their first loss of the year Thursday night against No. 7 Wheeling Park (3-3), 36-35, following two huge plays by leaders Blake Barkley and Ryan Niceler.
Both Niceler and Barkley have lived up to the hype given them in the preseason, but with one more year to grow, Barkley’s growth has been integral for a Hawks team that’s still trying to find its identity.
“He’s very valuable to our team. His ability to play numerous positions on the floor, on both sides of the ball, is crucial,” UHS coach Joe Schmidle said. “You’ve got a 6-foot-7 kid that can move, he can guard bigs, he was guarding their [Wheeling Parks’] point guard most of the night [Thursday night], he can shoot, he can post up, I mean, there’s not a whole lot he can’t do. And at that size, his future is very bright at the next level.”
What does being a leader mean to Barkley, though? After playing under communicative leaders like Kaden Metheny and K.J. McClurg, not only has Barkley had to step into a bigger role in terms of playing, he’s also had to evolve as a leader in the face of a shortened season.
“During some of the timeouts [Thursday] we were counting on Blake to be the catalyst to get things going defensively and raise the energy level, which I think he did,” Schmidle said. “He’s so long that he can create some havoc for the other teams. He’s growing into the role and the hard part for a lot of these guys is, when you’ve played with the Methenys and the McClurgs, you sit back and wait for everyone else to do it because that’s not your job yet. I talk to these guys and say, ‘You guys are the ones that have got to be the leaders. You’ve got to start talking, you’ve got to start being that teammate and taking that leadership role.
“They’re starting. They obviously don’t have it mastered, but they’re working on it and getting better at it. You know, they’re growing.”
Barkley got a few starts in the 2019-20 season, but was mostly an energy boost off the bench for the Hawks. This year, as part of the main five, Barkley has had to adapt. In anticipation, he mainly worked on his 3-point shooting, speed and agility in the offseason. He’s also seen through the last four games that defense will win the team games. Most notably, in the Wheeling Park bout, where he got a huge block to keep the Patriots at bay.
“Over the offseason I got a little better on defense. Last year, I couldn’t guard anybody,” he said. “I worked on my speed and agility, and that’s helped me a lot. I can guard a 3-wing, pretty much anything.”
So what are Barkley’s hopes for the rest of the season?
“We want to make it to states, for sure, but my main goal is to win states,” he said. “I want to be the top dog. The last two years we’ve had Kaden and K.J. and they’ve carried us with the championship; now we have to show our own. It’d be awesome; first year [in 4A] getting this done, we’re all young. Next year, we’ll lose two seniors, so next year we’ll have the same amount of versatility we have this year.”
Additionally, without Metheny and McClurg, Schmidle has had to start four bigs most of the year. With Niceler’s ability to be a 2 or 3 man, he’s been crucial to balance out a youth-laden guard corp and an experienced frontcourt.
“For our whole team, over the past few games we’ve had our good defense,” Barkley said. “That’s going to help us in the long run. We’re all long; Garrison Kisner, he’s one of my buddies, he’s about the same height as me and is a phenom. He’ll be good next year. He helps a lot, he’s a big man that can get rebounds and run the floor. Our team defense has gotten a lot better since the beginning of the season.”
The Hawks return to action at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at No. 2 Morgantown.
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