Sports in The Dominion Post
This article appeared in the Dominion Post Newspaper on March 1, 2004.
MHS tops final Class AAA poll
Associated Press
CHARLESTON -- Morgantown High held onto No. 1 in Class AAA despite losing, while Charleston Catholic took over the top spot in Class A in the final Associated Press boys state basketball poll Sunday.
Oak Glen remained No. 1 in Class AA. Morgantown (21-1) lost its first game of the season Saturday night, 73-51 at Parkersburg South. Morgantown received five of 10 first-place votes after being a unanimous No. 1 pick last week.
Woodrow Wilson, which has won 12 straight games, received the other four first-place votes and remained No. 2. South Charleston moved up one spot to third and was followed by Huntington, Hedgesville, George Washington, Martinsburg, Parkersburg South, St. Albans and R.C. Byrd.
Every team in last week's Class A Top 10 lost one game. Charleston Catholic, despite falling to Class AA Poca, moved to the No. 1 spot for the first time this season after spending the previous eight weeks at No. 2.
Gilmer County had been No. 1 since the first regular-season poll but lost to Williamstown during a 2-1 week.
Gilmer dropped to No. 2 and was followed by Meadow Bridge, Williamson, Valley Fayette, Tolsia, newcomer Fayetteville, Linsly, Buffalo and Wheeling Central.
Oak Glen was a unanimous choice at No. 1 in Class AA and was followed by Magnolia, Poca, Bluefield, Westside, Ravenswood, Wyoming East, Tug Valley, Lincoln and newcomer Winfield.
Talkington, Davis
co-players of week
CHARLESTON -- Calhoun County's Marcus Davis reads about Magnolia's Ted Talkington all the time. Now he'd like the opportunity to face him one-on-one.
Talkington and Davis, two of the best players in Class AA this season, were named The Associated Press boys high school co-players of the week Sunday.
Talkington averaged 30.5 points in wins over John Marshall and Brooke. Davis averaged 33 points in wins over Herbert Hoover, Richwood and Wahama.
Talkington earned the weekly honor for the third time this season. Davis has won it twice.
The seniors have never faced each other. The only way that could happen now is if their teams meet in the state tournament in Charleston.
First, both might need to chop down some oak.
Defending champion Magnolia's biggest hurdle might come in the regionals against No. 1 Oak Glen and high scorer Luke Samples.
Calhoun would need to get by either Clay County or Roane County to advance to the regionals, where Oak Hill is a possible opponent. Oak Hill lost in the state Class AA championship game last year.
The only time Davis and Talkington have been in the same building is at an all-state banquet.
''I haven't seen him play,'' Davis said Sunday. ''I read about him all the time. That's the guy I'm trying to get after. To make the states and play him, that would be really nice.''
Most of the individual attention in the state this year has been on the girl's side -- nine have signed to play for Division I schools next year. Only one boys player has done that. St. Albans' Adam Williams is headed to Kentucky next season.
So with a wide-open race for West Virginia boys player of the year, Davis and Talkington are putting in their statements.
Talkington leads the state with a 31.3-point scoring average. Davis is averaging about 27 points.
''If I played Ted Talkington, I might see if I'm up to that level. I think he's one of the top players in the state,'' Davis said.
However, only one Class AA player has won the award in the past 15 years. The rest have gone to players from Class AAA schools.
''That's a disadvantage for us,'' Davis said. ''We're AA and we play two or three A teams.''
Talkington said he doesn't even think about postseason honors.
''I just try to win games and get as far as I can in the playoffs,'' he said. ''It would be hard to receive it, but I'm not out there trying to pad my stats to get the award.''
Last week, Talkington scored 30 points against John Marshall, then finished the regular season with 31 points against Brooke. In the latter game he scored 21 in the second half, including his team's final 12 points. He made 13-of-16 free throws.
Davis had 44 points and 15 rebounds against Herbert Hoover and made 8-of-11 3-point attempts. He had 23 points and nine steals against Richwood, then had 32 points and 10 rebounds against Wahama.
AP-ES-02-29-04 1651EST
BOYS' RANKINGS
CHARLESTON (AP) -- The final Associated Press boys high school basketball poll released Sunday, with first-place votes in parentheses, records, points and last week's ranking:
Team Rec Pts Pvs
Class AAA
1. Morgantown (5) 21-1 94 1
2. Woodrow Wilson (4)18-4 91 2
3. South Charleston 19-3 75 4
4. Huntington 19-3 72 3
5. Hedgesville 19-3 48 7
6. George Washington 16-6 43 8
7. Martinsburg 17-5 41 5
8. Park. South (1)15-7 34 10
9. St. Albans 15-7 27 6
10. Robert C. Byrd19-3 20 9
Others: Capital 3, Elkins 1, Parkersburg 1.
Class AA
1. Oak Glen (10) 22-0 100 1
2. Magnolia 19-3 88 2
3. Poca 19-2 78 3
4. Bluefield17-4 61 5
5. Westside 18-3 60 4
6. Ravenswood 20-2 54 6
7. Wyoming East17-4 38 9
8. Tug Valley 16-5 25 8
9. Lincoln 16-4 23 7
10. Winfield16-6 14 --
Others: Logan 4, Calhoun County 3, Sissonville 2.
Class A
1. Charleston Cath. (7) 18-4 95 2
2. Gilmer County (3) 18-4 93 1
3. Meadow Bridge 16-5 65 3
4. Williamson 15-7 57 4
5. Valley Fayette 16-6 53 6
6. Tolsia15-7 49 5
7. Fayetteville14-5 35 --
8. Linsly15-9 28 8
9. Buffalo 17-5 26 10
10. Wheeling Central 11-11 22 9
Others: Gilbert 18, Harts 7, Tucker County 1.