Talkline with Hoppy Kercheval  Watch |  Listen

Adrian scores 29 points in Morgantown’s first alumni game

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Morgantown High has one of the richer traditions of boys basketball programs across the state.

On Saturday, past Mohigans got together to put that on display in the school’s first alumni game at the MHS gym.

Led by a 29-point effort from 2013 graduate Nate Adrian, Team Red claimed a 116-100 victory over Team Blue.

“At some point, the competitiveness takes over,” said Adrian, a former player at West Virginia University. “It was good to come out, get a run in and win.”

Morgantown coach Dave Tallman helped put together the event, which he felt was overdue.

“There’s been a lot of great players go through Morgantown High,” Tallman said. “I’ve gotten to know and coach a bunch of them, so we’ve been talking about it. It just kind of seemed like the right year to put it all together. We had a lot of guys in town. 

“We hope to grow it. We hope to have a women’s game next year with the men’s and it’s just really great to get these guys back and see them play and get them all together.”

Adrian’s younger sister, Lydia Adrian, played on the winning team and was the lone female on either roster. Each team had 10 players.

“It’s going to take time to grow, because this is the one first one and not everyone knew about it,” Nate Adrian said. “Once we get the word out next year, I think it’ll be even better.”

Zakeem Davis scored 12 of his 16 points in the first half and Craig Carey accounted for nine points over the first 20 minutes to help Team Red hold a 60-56 lead at the break.

Team Blue, meanwhile, was paced by Kenzie Melko’s 12 first-half points, while teammate Cam Selders scored 11.

But Nate Adrian got going in the second half to help Team Red gain separation. Adrian made three 3-pointers during a 22-point second half, while teammates Nate Smith and Nick Colasante also connected for three triplers after the intermission.

Smith finished with 17 points, while Colasante and Garrett Haines scored 11 and 10, respectively.

Adrian was the most valuable player for Team Red.

Nicky Solomon scored 15 of his team-high 24 points in the second half to garner MVP honors for Team Blue.

Melko scored 22 in defeat, while Selders added 19. 

“We wanted to get the young and the old together and continue to build that alumni network to our basketball program,” Tallman said. “They’re all great kids and a lot of them have had a lot of success. I had a lot of fun just sitting back and watching. As you can see there was a ton of talent out there.”





More High School Sports

High School Sports
Class AAAA Boys Basketball All-State List
Morgantown guard Sharron Young captain of first team.
March 29, 2024 - 9:25 am
High School Sports
Herbert Hoover improves to 10-0 with 2-1 win over Hurricane
The Huskies collected a pair of victories Thursday in the Guard the Capital Invitational in Charleston.
March 29, 2024 - 12:51 am
High School Sports
Independence bests Wahama, 10-2 in the Guard the Capital Tournament
March 28, 2024 - 9:03 pm
High School Sports
Photo gallery: University defeats Bridgeport, 12-3
March 28, 2024 - 6:24 pm