MORGANTOWN 79 PARK. SOUTH 52
MHS boys pound Patriots
Adrian (20) tops four Mohigans in double figures
BY KRISTIN KURELIC
The Dominion Post
After a pregame moment of silence for Nicolas Colasante’s uncle, Tim Saab, who was the chairman of the fundraising committee for Morgantown High’s Athletic Facilities project and died Tuesday, the senior point guard tore up the Rowdy Center.
He wasn’t the only one.
Four Mohigans scored in double figures as MHS destroyed Parkersburg South, 79-52, on Friday.
“We moved the ball well, we got in the lane and pushed it back out, and we just came through tonight,” senior guard Dean Marshall said. “It was a team effort. Everyone can do everything for us. If need be, anyone can step up.”
PSHS entered the contest hot, at 7-1 with six consecutive wins, and continued to roll through half of the first quarter. The Patriots leaped to an 8-2 lead as the Mohigans temporarily struggled to convert baskets after breaking a full-court press. But the drought was short-lived.
“We prepared for their press, and they pressed and we did what we were supposed to do, and when we did, we got a lot of different guys to finish,” MHS head coach Tom Yester said.
MHS senior forward Austin Agnew kicked it into gear and carried MHS back, going strong to the rim for nine points in the first quarter. He led the Mohigans on a 6-0 run to tie the game at 10, and Marshall’s pair of free throws gave them a lead that kept growing the rest of the night.
One PSHS free-throw later, MHS went on a 10-0 run fueled by ... just about everyone.
Colasante dished an assist to Agnew before hitting a 3, and then Mark Johnson, playing while sick, came off the bench to drain a 3 and the next bucket to give MHS a 22-11 lead.
Agnew collected his third foul in the second quarter and saw limited playing time the rest of the game, but the MHS guards made up for his inside presence. They used aggressive man-to-man pressure to shut out the Patriots, who were averaging 75 points per game, for another three minutes, this time 13-0.
“We try to hang our hat on defense and that’s hopefully what will win us games,” Marshall said. “If we have to, we can win on offense, but we want to try to win on defense if we can.”
Meanwhile, the offensive ruckus continued all night: 11 Mohigans saw action and nine scored.
Senior forward Nathan Adrian scored a game-high 20 points with three 3s and 13 rebounds. Marshall poured in 16 points, mostly on dynamic drives to the basket, and Agnew netted 13 with his five rebounds. Meanwhile, Johnson tallied 10, going 4-of-6 from the field with two 3s.
Colasante added seven points and was responsible for many of the rest, as he shredded the Patriots’ defense with seven assists to one turnover. “You get Nathan, Dean, Austin and somebody else chipping in, which they did — Johnson chipped in and so did Colasante and so did Eby,” Yester said. “Then you have balance, and balance is hard to beat.” MHS (6-1) travels to Brooke at 7:30 p.m. today.
MORGANTOWN (6-1) Adrian 8 1-2 20, Agnew 5 4-5 13, Colasante 2 2-2 7, Marshall 7 2-2 16, Eby 2 1-2 6, Cardin 1 1-1 3, Johnson 4 0-0 10, Selby 0 0-0 0, Turner 0 0-0 0, Core 0 2-2 2, Solomon 1 0-0 2. Totals 30 13-16 79. PARKERSBURG SOUTH (7-2) Cox 2 5-8 10, Mitchem 6 0-0 13, Bolen 7 0-0 15, Dennis 3 0-0 8, Monroe 2 1-1 5, Berry 0 1-2 1, Lawrentz 0 0-0 0, Rippeto 0 0-0 0, Casey Stoneking 0 0-0 0, Kyle Thompson 0 0-0 0 Alex Simon 0 0-0 0, J.R. Kerr 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 7-11 52. Parkersburg South 15 12 12 13 — 52 Morgantown High 22 25 11 21 — 79 3-point goals:PSHS 5 (Dennis 2, Cox, Mitchem, Bolen), MHS 7 (Adrian 3, Johnson 2, Colasante, Eby).
Ron Rittenhouse/The Dominion Post
