MORGANTOWN – Morgantown High School boys basketball head coach Dave Tallman and his club know that in most games, when you see all five starters score in double figures and force your opponents into more than 20 turnovers, chances are they’ll enjoy the result.
Such was the case Wednesday night inside the Rowdie Center at MHS as the No. 2 Mohigans (7-1) welcomed Wheeling Park and sent the Patriots (4-5) back home after an 89-51 victory.
Junior Waylon Colistra paced MHS with 17 points and eight rebounds. He was joined in double-digit scoring by the rest of the starting lineup as seniors Brady Savage (14), Demarcus Bandy (14), Marty Johnson (13), and sophomore Max Frey (11) all contributed 11 or more points.
Colistra and Savage each added eight rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Bandy had five takeaways, and Johnson dished a game-high five assists.
The Mohigans forced Wheeling Park into 24 turnovers with 16 steals, as five players tallied at least two.
“I thought our starting lineup brought a lot of energy tonight,” MHS head coach Dave Tallman said. “We weren’t too thrilled with the bench tonight; I need to see those guys step up when they touch the floor. I thought Demarcus Bandy, Waylon, Brady, and Marty brought a lot of energy to us and played with a lot of heart and aggression.”
MHS jumped out in front early, building an 11-3 lead through the opening three minutes of the game.
That lead grew to 18-5 midway through the quarter, but the Patriots managed a quick 7-0 run to cut the lead to six points, 18-12, with 90 seconds left in the first. The Mohigans ended the frame on an 8-2 run and led by 12 after one.
Trailing by 12, Wheeling Park didn’t let up, keeping within reach of the Mohigans throughout the first half of the second quarter. The Patriots successfully beat the full-court press being applied by MHS and managed some easy baskets on the break.
But the Park offensive success came to a screeching halt with 4:16 left until halftime, as MHS exploded for a 9-0 run capped by Johnson’s second triple of the contest. What was a 12-point advantage for MHS two minutes into the second quarter became 25 before the break as the hosts entered the locker room leading 51-26.
Wheeling Park managed an even quarter with the Mohigans in the third, 13-all, but the damage was too significant to overcome as Colistra and Savage dominated the paint and boards.
The pair combined for 31 points and 16 rebounds, 11 coming offensively. Savage scored his 14 points while shooting 7 of 8 from the field. He also added two assists and two steals.
Colistra, who led MHS with his 17 points, shot 7 of 13 from the field and hit one of his team’s seven triples on the night.
“Brady has been great this year, he’s been a part of three state championships, and it means something to him to be chasing number four this season,” Tallman said. “He’s a great person to be around and a great leader. We know when number 32 takes the floor for us, we have a chance.”
MHS outscored the Patriots 25-12 in the final quarter.
The Mohigans will face John Marshall on the road on Friday evening before traveling to New Martinsville on Saturday for a contest with Class AAA No. 1 Nitro at 1:30 p.m. at the Rotary Shootout hosted by Magnolia High School.
BOX SCORE
Morgantown 89, Wheeling Park 51
Wheeling Park 14 12 13 12 – 51
Morgantown 26 25 13 25 – 89
Wheeling Park (4-5) – Williams 5 5-5 17 Whitmire 2 0-1 8 Huffman 3 2-4 9 Saunders-Paige 2 2-4 7 Bordas 4 0-0 10 Beck-James 1 1-2 3 TOTALS: 18 10-16 51
Morgantown (7-1) – Colistra 7 2-3 17 Savage 7 0-3 14 Bandy 4 5-7 14 M Johnson 4 3-3 13 Frey 4 3-5 11 Ridgeway 2 2-2 7 Goins 2 0-2 6 Kellogg 1 3-3 5 A Johnson 1 0-0 2 TOTALS: 32 18-28 89
3pt goals made – Wheeling Park 8 (Williams 2 Whitmire 2 Bordas 2 Huffman 1 Saunders-Paige 1); Morgantown 7 (Johnson 2 Goins 2 Ridgeway 1 Bandy 1 Colistra 1).
