Fresh off moving up to No. 1 in the state on Tuesday, the Morgantown High boys’ basketball team found itself with an early challenge against rival University High.
In front of a boisterous crowd, the game took off with a frenetic, run-and-gun pace. Three huge dunks, two by the Hawks’ KK Lewis, and one by Morgantown’s Demarcus Bandy got their respective fans in a frenzy.
But, as is routinely the case in sports, and is nearly always the case for the three-peat state champs Mohigans under coach Dave Tallman, defense eventually wins out.
That’s what happened in this one, as the Mohigans limited No. 7 UHS to just four third-quarter points and only 10 in the first 14 minutes of the second half to pull away comfortably, 66-40.
After that initial burst of energy, the familiar patterns of the season emerged for both teams. The Mohigans (12-1) turned their tough, athletic brand of in-your-face defense into turnovers and easy baskets, while University (11-3) encountered difficulty hitting from the perimeter. It’s a difficult combination to overcome, although UHS was able to hang around after trailing by as many as 10 in the first quarter to whittle the lead down to 18-11. A quick 7-2 MHS run to begin the second quarter stretched their advantage to a dozen, but once again, the Hawks battled back, pulling the deficit to a manageable, single-digit gap of 31-23 at the break.
And then the Mohigans tightened the defensive screws, especially on the glass, limiting University to few open looks, fewer dribble-drive opportunities, and essentially zero second-chance offensive rebounds.
When MHS guard Marcus Goins heated up with a pair of triples, the Mohigans were firmly in command, up 45-27 heading into the fourth. And it was more of the same, as Goins nailed his third trifecta, while the MHS defense allowed only two field goals for the first six minutes of the quarter. Up by 29 late, MHS cruised home to sweep the season series over the Hawks in convincing fashion.
Tallman’s club boasted very balanced production, with Bandy pacing all scorers with 12, followed by Max Frey with 11, Morty Johnson with 10, and 9 from Goins and Brady Savage. Lewis led the Hawks with 10.
“We came out flat in the first half, especially defensively,” said Tallman after the game. “We didn’t execute well on offense and were a little selfish with the ball as well. We started to share the ball better in the second half, and we played harder defense in the second half as well. You’ll always be happy limiting a team to four points in a quarter, but everything we do starts with our defense, and for us, the standard is the standard. We don’t play until the OVAC next week, so we’ll give them a day off – it’s probably more for the coaches, to be honest – and then we’ll get back at it and try to win that tournament.”
For UHS coach Joe Schmidle, it was a familiar refrain, but with one redeeming sign.
“We didn’t surrender,” he said, referring to the Hawks disappointing effort against MHS earlier in the season. “We played hard and battled. But you aren’t going to beat anybody scoring 40 points a game, and when you shoot 30% (16-49), and 2-for-10 from three, and then get annihilated in rebounding (38-21), it just doesn’t leave any chance.
“I thought we did well to stay in touch in the first half, but it’s really a confidence issue. We weren’t aggressive either in taking guys to the rim or taking shots when we had looks. You have to work so hard to get an open shot against Morgantown – that’s what they do, they disrupt your offensive rhythm, and they’re very good at it – so if you get one, you have to take advantage. We couldn’t do that tonight, and we’ve struggled all year from the outside.”
When asked if he’d like another shot to knock off MHS, Schmidle was his usual straight-shooting self.
“Well, it would be just fine with me if we don’t have to face them again to get to Charleston,” he laughed. “But if we would beat them, I’d rather it be when it matters more for sure. All we can do is keep working hard, looking for ways to play more freely on offense, and try to keep getting better.”
University travels to Bridgeport at 2 p.m. Saturday, and then both Morgantown and the Hawks will host Ohio Valley Athletic Conference semifinal tournament games next Tuesday.
Box score
MORGANTOWN (12-1)
Max Frey 4 2-4 11 Demarcus Bandy 5 1-2 12 Cam Kellogg 2 0-0 6 Morty Johnson 4 2-2 10 Waylon Colistra 3 0-0 6 Brady Savage 4 1-2 9 Marcus Goins 3 0-0 9 Alex Himes 1 0-0 3 Totals 26 6-10 66.
UNIVERSITY (11-3)
Zachary Demidovich 3 2-2 8 Glen Brown 3 0-0 6 Eli Karpinski 2 0-0 5 Kyle Weaver 1 0-0 3 KK Lewis 4 2-2 10 Luke Byrer 2 0-0 4 Jack Byrer 1 0-0 2 Evan Toler 1 0-1 2 Totals 17 4-5 40.
3-pointers: MHS 8 (Goings 3, Frey , Bandy, Himes, Kellogg 2), UHS 2 (Karpinski, Weaver)
