— by Michael Minnich, The Exponent Telegram
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — Fairmont Senior and Chapmanville, Chapmanville and Fairmont Senior.
Class AA boys basketball has belonged to those two schools, in whatever order, for the past three seasons, with the Tigers winning the last two of their best-of-three-years series in the state championship game.
So it makes complete sense that they would snare half of the eight spots on the all-state first team, announced by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association on Thursday.
The Polar Bears’ Jalen Bridges is the team captain after averaging 22.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 2 blocks and 1.9 steals per game heading into the state tournament for the 26-2 Big 10 Conference champions.
He is joined on the first team by fellow senior teammate Zyon Dobbs, who put in 16.8 points a game to go with 5.5 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 2.0 steals per contest.
Chapmanville, which beat Fairmont Senior twice this year and finished with a 26-2 mark, is represented by junior Obinna Anochili-Killen and senior Devin Collins.
Collins averaged 15.8 points per game, while Anochili-Killen put in 15.2 a contest.
Anochili-Killen, a fantastic rim protector, nearly had a triple-double in the title game with 12 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocks, while Collins scored 17 in the final.
Bluefield junior Braden Crews, Logan junior David Early, Nicholas County junior Luke LeRose and Oak Hill senior Andrew Work make up the other half of the first team.
Crews, at 23.4 points per game, was easily the top scorer for a Beavers club that completed a 21-3 season by making the state semifinals.
Early was the engine for a 20-5 Logan team that lost in the regional final to Poca, scoring over 30 points in eight games and averaging 26.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game.
LeRose, too, was a force for a team that came a win away from Charleston, pouring in 30.5 points a contest and also finishing with averages of 5.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.9 steals.
Work scored 17.7 points a game for the Red Devils, state quarterfinalists with a 20-6 mark.
Oak Hill fell to second team captain Tanner Kennedy and Robert C. Byrd in that game.
Kennedy, a senior did a little bit of everything for the Flying Eagles, averaging 13.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.0 steals a game.
He is joined on the second team by junior teammate Khori Miles (15.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.7 steals a game) and fellow Big 10 guards and seniors Elliot White of Elkins (21.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 3.8 steals a game) and Dasilas Jones of Fairmont Senior (15.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.3 steals).
Logan junior Drew Hatfield (14.5 points, 10.5 assists, 4.0 rebounds, 3.6 steals), Oak Glen senior Ethan Travis (18.3 points, 12.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 2.0 steals, 1.1 blocks), Poca freshman Isaac McKneely (17.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists) and Shady Spring junior Tommy Williams are the rest of the second team.
James Monroe senior McKinley Mann captains the third team; Bridgeport junior Nick Stalnaker, Grafton senior Jack Faulkner, Lincoln senior Tanner Walls, Nitro senior Joel Sweat, North Marion junior Gunner Murphy, Oak Hill senior Darrick McDowell and Wyoming East junior McQuade Canada comprise the rest of the squad.
The 2019 all-state girls basketball team as selected by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association:
Class AA
First team
Jalen Bridges, Fairmont Senior, Sr. (captain)
Obinna Anochili-Killen, Chapmanville, Jr.
Zyon Dobbs, Fairmont Senior, Sr.
Devin Collins, Chapmanville, Sr.
David Early, Logan, Jr.
Luke LeRose, Nicholas County, Jr.
Andrew Work, Oak Hill, Sr.
Braeden Crews, Bluefield, Jr.
Second team
Elliot White, Elkins, Sr.
Dasilas Jones, Fairmont Senior, Sr.
Drew Hatfield, Logan, Jr.
Tanner Kennedy, Robert C. Byrd, Sr. (captain)
Isaac McKneely, Poca, Fr.
Tommy Williams, Shady Spring, Jr.
Ethan Travis, Oak Glen, Sr.
Khori Miles, Robert C. Byrd, Jr.
Third team
McKinley Mann, James Monroe, Sr. (captain)
Darrick McDowell, Oak Hill, Sr.
Nick Stalnaker, Bridgeport, Jr.
Joel Sweat, Nitro, Sr.
Tanner Walls, Lincoln County, Sr.
McQuade Canada, Wyoming East, Jr.
Jack Faulkner, Grafton, Jr.
Gunner Murphy, North Marion, Sr.
Honorable Mention
EJ Barkley, Berkeley Springs; Jagger Bell, Scott; Tanner Bifano, Bridgeport; Caleb Bish, Grafton; Grant Bonner, Herbert Hoover; Jake Bowen, Bridgeport; Hunter Bush, Point Pleasant; Jared Cannady, Independence; Jordan Coon, Roane County; Zach Cook, Man; Christian Frye, Winfield; Kyle Gannon, Lewis County; Will Hackney, Sissonville; Jacob Hamilton, Nicholas County; Jon Hamilton, Scott; Luke Haught, Weir; Jed Hawkins, Philip Barbour; Payton Hawkins, Lincoln; Hunter Hill, Lincoln County; Braden Howell, Liberty Raleigh; RJ Hood, Wyoming East; Chance Howell, Liberty Harrison; Tanner Huffman, Nicholas County; Jaelin Johnson, Fairmont Senior; Gavin Kennedy, Robert C. Byrd; Jordan Kish, Chapmanville; Jansen Knotts, Frankfort; Ryan Leep, Lincoln; Bryson Lucas, Robert C. Byrd; Andrew Mahairas, Nitro; Levi MacAdam, Philip Barbour; Evan McKneely, Poca; Blake Moore, Grafton; Shawn Moran, Lewis County; Philip Mullins, Chapmanville; Robert Murphy, North Marion; Peter Noe, Logan; Hunter Poole, Petersburg; Garrett Quinn, Clay County; Reggie Redman, Keyser; Reed Reitter, Weir; Shad Sauvage, James Monroe; Andrew Shull, Chapmanville; Sean Smith, Oak Glen; Ryan Shoemaker, Keyser; Zach Snyder, Lincoln; Jadyn Stewart, Braxton County; Ben Underwood, East Fairmont; Hunter Walters, Westside; Josh Wellman, Mingo Central; Zach Whiteacre, Frankfort; Donovan Wiles, Elkins; A.J. Williams, Liberty Raleigh; Stephen Williams, Shady Spring