MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Last Friday’s boys’ basketball game at Morgantown High between the Mohigans and University lived up to the lofty expectations both programs have built over the last five to six years, and the crowd responded.
The Rowdy Center was packed with fans from both schools, with every section of the bleachers filled to the top. Both sides were respectful but loud as MHS and UHS, both in the Class AAA top three in West Virginia, went back and forth, eventually ending in a 49-46 win for the No. 1 Hawks.
Having a packed house when these two play, whether its at MHS or UHS, is nothing new over the last few years. With the success of each program — both have won state championships in the last four seasons — that shouldn’t come as a surprise.
What does come as a surprise, though, is that the crosstown matchup is one of the only times either gym is even remotely close to being full. At another regular season game against, say, John Marshall or Buckhannon-Upshur, there are barely enough fans there to notice.
And because of that, folks are missing out on some pretty good basketball.
“I hope the fans come back,” MHS coach Dave Tallman said after the UHS game. “I hope they go and support University High’s games because they’ve got a heck of a team. They’ve got two special players that don’t come around very often. We’ve got a group of players that work really hard and are all great kids.
“I hope people come back and support these two teams this year.”
The two players Tallman mentioned for the Hawks are senior guards Kaden Metheny and K.J. McClurg, who both will play Division I hoops at the next level. Metheny has already signed with Bowling Green, while McClurg is collecting offers from the likes of Niagara and Navy.
The dynamic duo helped lead UHS to the school’s first state championship last year, but outside of the three games in town against the Mohigans, not many got to see it. With barely anyone in the stands with the exception of players’ and coaches’ families, the squeaking sneakers fill the air rather than cheers.
The Hawks have made the state tournament the last three years and are well on their way to doing it again with an 8-2 start — both losses coming to power out-of-state programs in Myrtle Beach, S.C. over the holiday break.
MHS has made the state tournament the last four years, including a 27-0 state title win in 2016, and like UHS, appears to be on track to get back. The Mohigans are 7-1 with their lone loss being to the Hawks.
“I just think it’s a shame that you have two of the better basketball programs in the state of West Virginia right here in Morgantown, and unless we’re playing against each other, nobody comes to the games,” UHS coach Joe Schmidle said. “I know that we have to compete with WVU, and I understand that, but it’s too bad our kids don’t receive more support from their communities. I don’t think a lot of these people realize how good these high school players are and how enjoyable they are to watch play.”
WVU is the biggest show in town, especially with both the men’s and women’s programs sitting in the top 20 nationally.
But there are local kids, born and raised here, making an impact at the highest level, and they deserve the attention.
This problem isn’t specific to the MHS and UHS boys’ programs, however. The University girls’ basketball team made it to the state championship last year and face the same issues. The MHS girls had one of the most dominant programs in the last decade.
At Preston, the girls’ team is ranked in the top 10 with a 8-1 mark and the boys are working their way back. At Clay-Battelle, the boys’ squad is off to a stellar start in Class A, coming in at No. 6 with a 7-0 record, while the girls are 5-2.
Both Trinity teams are in the middle of a rebuild, but each have won state tournament games the last couple years.
These teams deserve to have fans in the stands, and I’m not here to tell people what to do with their time or money. This is simply to let everyone know what they could be missing as basketball fans.
