MORGANTOWN 60 PRESTON 46
Adrian nets 25, MHS pulls away
Knights hold halftime lead on Mohigans

BY ERIC HANLON
The Dominion Post

The Morgantown High boys’ basketball team played its first game of the season Wednesday night, and for three quarters, it looked like it.
Eventually, though, Morgantown shook off the cobwebs and beat visiting Preston, 60-46.
“We started out slow. Everybody was nervous,” Morgantown’s Nathan Adrian said. “We had a lot of turnovers in the first half, but once we settled down, we played a lot better.”
MHS (1-0) committed 10 turnovers in the first half, compared to just four in the second. The result of the slow start had Preston (2-1) up, 23-20, at the half.
“We’ve got some stuff to work on,” MHS head coach Tom Yester said. “Hopefully, we’ll learn from this.”
Adrian, who has already committed to play college ball at WVU, is the lone returning starter for the Mohigans. He also was the most effective weapon in Yester’s arsenal.
The 6-foot-9 junior recorded a double-double, with 25 points and 18 rebounds. He added three blocks and a steal.
“He had to get some points tonight,” Yester said. “We’re going to have to have some other people score more than they did today.”
The game remained close in the third quarter, but soon, Preston — which has five new starters — began to unravel.
HAWKS CHALK UP easy win against Fort Hill. Page 7-B.
“When they took their time and were patient, we were up, 23-20. We were in a hurry, and you can’t be in a hurry and beat Morgantown. Some teams can. We can’t. If we do, we get beat,” PHS head coach Barry Sanders said. “I don’t know how many times we turned it over in the second half but it was probably three times as much as in the first.”
A late burst by the Mohigans in the third put them up, 40-35, to start the final frame.
MHS quickly extended the lead to 13 behind the play of Adrian and fellow junior Dean Marshall, who finished the game with 16 points (10 in the fourth quarter).
“What happened is what we hoped would happen. Dean Marshall started to feel it and Nathan settled down once we made him more of a post player,” Yester said. Adrian “used his size to his advantage, and, well, his stats aren’t too bad.”
After going only 1-for-7 from the free-throw line through three quarters, MHS made them when it counted, going 9-for-11 in the fourth quarter to pull away.
“At the end, I thought we did a good job of holding the ball and making a few foul shots. We sure didn’t do that in the first half,” Yester said. “I told the kids, ‘This game is played in four quarters, not one. Just keep playing,’ and they did.” Preston was led by sophomore Jimmy Galusky, who scored a team-high 13 points, while junior Mitchell Koch contributed 12.
PRESTON (2-1) Koch 3 3-4 12, Scott 3 0-0 9, Galusky 6 0-0 13, T. Groves 4 1-2 9, Adams 0 0-0 0, Herndon 1 1-2 3, L. Groves 0 0-0 0, Myers 0 0-0 0, Royce 0 0-0 0, Monroe 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 3-8 46. MORGANTOWN (1-0) Colasante 0 1-2 1, Marshall 5 5-5 16, Johnson 1 1-2 3, Adrian 10 2-5 25, Agnew 2 0-2 4, Fleming 0 0-0 0, Loudin 3 1-2 7, Eby 0 0-0 0, Leftridge 2 0-0 4, Antonini 0 0-0 0, Fullmer 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 10-18 60. Preston 11 12 12 11 — 46 Morgantown 7 13 22 18 — 60 3-point goals: Preston 7 (Koch 3, Scott 3, Galusky). Morgantown 4 (Adrian 3, Marshall).

Jason DeProspero/The Dominion Post
Preston High’s Mitchell Koch (left) tries to stop Morgantown’s Nathan Adrian from dunking in the first half Wednesday. Koch fouled Adrian on the play.