FAIRMONT, W.Va. — In a rematch of the last two Class AA boys basketball state title games — and between the last two AA state champions — Poca defeated Fairmont Senior 66-63 on Monday night, hitting pivotal free throws in the final minute to hold off the Polar Bears.
“Fairmont Senior is a heck of a team and Coach Retton does a tremendous job,” said first year Poca coach Derek Ragle. “To come up here and get a win on their home floor is huge for us. We had a little stretch there where we lost two games in a row and we weren’t playing so good. We’ve finally been able to get things to click and they’re playing really hard and together.”
Poca (7-2) was led by senior Luke Frampton who scored 29 points, including two slam-dunks and four 3s.
“This was a huge win, coming up here,” Frampton said. “It was a battle until the end, a close game that came down to the wire. My teammates got me the ball and that was really the thing (on scoring 29 points). I couldn’t do it without them. We work hard all week and to come up here and get this win means a lot.”
Two of those 3s came in the fourth quarter, including a dagger with under two minutes to go that put the Dots up 61-54.
“I missed a layup and then I was just wide open,” Frampton said. “Chase (Dotson) had a good down-screen and I came out of it wide open. As soon as it left my fingertips, I knew it was going in. It was a tough shot, but I’m glad it went in.”
Mitchell Hoffman added 16 points for Poca in the win, while Fairmont Senior (8-3) was led by Taevon Horton who scored 18 points, including four 3s. Zyon Dobbs added 13 points for the Polar Bears in the loss as well.
Fairmont Senior led 27-25 at the half, but trailed 45-41 entering the fourth.
Full highlights are posted below:
A look at Frampton’s two dunks: