MORGANTOWN – The University High School boys’ basketball team had a clear message from head coach Joe Schmidle in the locker room at halftime during Monday’s contest against visiting Musselman: bring some energy.
The Hawks did just that, using a 15-point advantage in the second half that helped them pick up a decisive win over the Applemen, 59-40 on Baker’s Ridge.
UHS (15-5) led by four points, 22-18, at the break after a slow offensive half from both clubs. But the Hawks soared out of the locker room and matched their first-half total of 22 in the third quarter alone.
Three Hawks scored in double figures while the team dished 16 assists and grabbed 19 rebounds. Junior Glenn Brown led UHS with 14 points, including four triples, while adding four assists and three boards. Jagger Barnes added 13 points off the bench, and Luke Byrer contributed 11.
“We needed energy,” Schmidle said. “I hate playing Monday games; it’s like going to work. I looked at my staff and said we just need to press whether it works or doesn’t work. That helped us speed up the pace of the game, and I think that gave us the spark we needed and allowed us to play a bit looser.”
Both sides’ slow offensive starts in the first quarter gave Musselman (6-12) an early one-possession advantage, 12-10. Brown started early with five quick points, but the Hawks’ offense went stagnant, ending the quarter with only two points in the final 3:23.
Barnes made his presence felt midway through the second and helped propel UHS to the lead with a steal and a layup followed by a massive block on the defensive end. 30 seconds later, he added a triple to give the Hawks a 19-16 lead.
“Our sophomore class has been good for us this season,” Schmidle said. “Jagger, Luke, KK (Lewis) have all been good. We’ve needed that spark from our bench many times this season.
UHS entered the break with a four-point advantage, 22-18, but looked like a completely different team coming out of the locker room to begin the third frame.
Two minutes into the quarter, UHS senior Zach Demidovich gave his team a 29-20 lead, going coast-to-coast to complete a conventional three-point play, and the Hawks didn’t look back from there.
UHS scored 22 points in the third quarter, doubling their first-half total and swelling the lead to 14 entering the fourth, 44-30.
The hosts added 15 more in the final frame on their way to their 15th win of the season.
“We have to keep taking everything one game at a time,” Schmidle said of his club entering the season’s final stretch. “Our guys know how important every game is during the season. These games down the stretch really determine where you are if you make it to Charleston, and we want to make sure we put ourselves in the best position possible.”
UHS will return home on Wednesday for a matchup with Martinsburg at 7:00 p.m.
BOX SCORE
University 59, Musselman 40
MHS 12 6 12 10 – 40
UHS 10 12 22 15 – 59
Musselman (6-12) – Price 3 0-0 6 Santa Maria 5 5-6 15 Shelton 1 2-2 4 Bunny 1 3-4 5 Polanco 1 0-2 2 Bartles 2 0-0 5 Cromwell 1 0-0 2
University (15-5) – Brown 5 0-0 14 Barnes 6 0-1 13 Byrer 5 0-1 11 Demidovich 3 1-2 7 Lewis 3 0-0 6 Adams 2 0-0 5 Karpinski 1 0-0 2
3pt goals made: Musselman 1 (Bartles); University 7 (Brown 4 Byrer 1 Adams 1 Barnes 1)
