MORGANTOWN – The No. 2 Morgantown High School boys’ basketball team concluded the regular season on Thursday night as No. 3 George Washington visited the Rowdie Center for a battle of top teams in Class AAAA.
Leading by seven after three quarters, the Mohigans rallied in the fourth, outscoring the Patriots 23-8 in the final eight minutes of the contest to secure a solid 57-35 victory heading into postseason play.
MHS was led by junior Waylon Colistra with 16 points, six rebounds, and a pair of blocks. He was joined in double figures by senior Marty Johnson with 15 points. Sophomore Colin Ridgeway contributed nine points from the bench, while senior Demarcus Bandy filled the stat sheet with eight points, seven rebounds, five assist, and two steals.
George Washington was paced by junior Noah Lewis, who led the game with 19 points. Chuck Kelley added 10.
MHS finishes its regular season with a record of 18-2 and enters the Region I tournament as the top seed, earning a bye to the regional co-final where it awaits the winner of Preston/Wheeling Park.
“I think it was more offensively,” MHS head coach Dave Tallman said of the difference in the final frame. “We were pretty solid defensively all night, that’s something we’ve been working hard on this week, they’re really good defensively and we had to play together. We did a great job of moving the ball down the stretch.”
Both sides began the game well defensively as MHS held just a 2-0 lead three minutes into the game.
George Washington didn’t find its first points until the 2:32 mark of the opening quarter as the Mohigans led 10-5 after the first.
Colistra opened the second quarter with a conventional three-point play, extending the lead to eight, but the Patriots refused to let the lead get too far away.
Johnson scored a tough layup to give MHS a 20-9 lead with 3:33 left until the half but an 8-3 run by George Washington cut the hosts’ lead to six at halftime, 23-17.
The Patriots began the second half with a triple by Lewis that cut the lead to one possession, however, that would be as close as MHS would allow them to get.
The Mohigans ramped up their defense midway throuhg the third and found open looks offensively with everyone on the floor making an impact on the game.
“I think we have nearly five or six guys in double figures this season and it can be hard to scout us,” Tallman said. “With our guys it can be someone new every night, they’re all capable. The ball found Waylon tonight and it’s always in Marty’s hands.”
Johnson closed the third with his second three of the game, extending the lead to seven, 34-27, and an 8-2 MHS run to begin the fourth began to close the door on the Patriots hopes.
The Mohigans closed the game at the free throw line for their 18th victory of the season.
“This game is a great game for both teams to get on film and see what is going well and what isn’t going well,” Tallman said. “We want to take it one game at a time and we aren’t going to leave any stones unturned.”
BOX SCORE
Morgantown 57, George Washington 35
GW 5 12 10 8 – 35
MHS 10 13 11 23 – 57
George Washington (18-4) – Lewis 8 2-5 19 Kelley 4 2-2 10 Brown 2 0-0 4 Sprouse 1 0-0 2
Morgantown (18-2) – Colistra 6 4-4 16 Johnson 4 5-6 15 Ridgeway 1 6-7 9 Bandy 3 2-2 8 Savage 2 1-1 5 Frey 0 4-4 4 Kellogg 0 1-3 1
3pt goals made: Morgantown 3 (Johnson 2 Ridgeway 1); George Washington 1 (Lewis 1)
