MORGANTOWN – The Morgantown boys basketball team (19-4) defeated Wheeling Park (15-9) 57-32 on Friday night to claim the AAAA Region 1 Section 1 title. MHS sophomore Sha-ron Young led all scorers with 16 points as the starters combined for 50 of the teams 57 total points.
When these two teams met in Wheeling on February 23rd, the Patriots actually led the game in the second half. MHS would however, ultimately win the game by a score of 61-50. MHS head coach Dave Tallman said he and his team noticed their defensive lapses in that game from watching film and whatever they adjusted worked on Friday night.
In the opening quarter, the Patriots were held to just seven shot attempts despite running decent offense initially, MHS did well cutting passing lanes and forcing WPHS into turnovers. The Mohigans welcomed a 15-4 lead at the end of one.
To open the second, both teams would struggle to score. The Patriots Xander Gibson brought his team within single-digits at 19-11 with a three from the corner at the 3:45 mark. He led his team with 10 points.
Then, faster than the time it took to blink your eyes, MHS went on a 9-0 run to bust the lead wide open. Turnover still plagued the Patriots, who faced a 17 point deficit at the half, 28-11.
“Our defense was incredible, we broke down the film with our guys from the last game against these guys and they weren’t too happy with what they saw,” Tallman said of the last game played against WPHS.
What was more impressive for MHS perhaps, was the fact that with 28 points scored at halftime, none of their scorers had reached double-figures.
The third quarter saw better offense by both teams, but a slower pace, with both scoring in single digits in the quarter. Sha-ron Young would be the first to reach double-digits at 11, as he controlled the floor well offensively. Despite the inexperience of Young, Tallman is confident his starting point guard is ready for the moment.
“I’ve been going to the state tournament since the year I was born and there’s no secret good guard play helps win in the postseason,” said Tallman. “He [Sha-ron] is a special one, he’s still learning but there’s nobody out working him. He was in the gym today at 3:30 getting shots up and is usually one of the last guys to leave.”
Young would finish with a game-high 16 and be joined in the double-figures by his teammate Alec Poland who finished with 15. MHS also shot 12 for 14 from the free throw line.
With under 2 minutes and a complete lineup change for both squads, MHS would dribble the clock to zeros to defeat Wheeling Park 57-32 and secure another sectional championship. The victory sets up a rematch with crosstown rival University High School with the winner punching a ticket to Charleston for the AAAA state tournament. Tipoff is set for Wednesday, March 9 at 7:00 p.m. inside the Rowdie Center at MHS.
Morgantown (19-4)
Sha-ron Young 13 2-2 16 Alec Poland 9 6-6 15 Brooks Gage 8 4-6 8 Brody Davis 6 0-0 6 Jalen Goins 2 0-0 5 Ethan Wise 1 0-0 3 Ethan Marra 1 0-0 2 Cam Danser 3 0-0 2
Wheeling Park (15-8)
Xander Gibson 5 2-2 10 Brett Phillips 5 1-2 9 Aiden Davis 7 2-2 4 D’Arrae Goodwin 2 0-0 3 Cole Wilkinson 3 0-0 2 Caleb Francis 2 1-2 1
MORGANTOWN – 15 13 9 20 57
WHEELING PARK – 4 7 6 15 32
Three-pointers: Morgantown 5 (Young 2, Poland 1, Goins 1, Wise 1); Wheeling Park 3 (Gibson 2, Goodwin 1)
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