SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Senior guard Mason Pinkett scored 12 of his game-high 26 points in the fourth quarter as George Washington pulled away from Huntington in the MSAC Championship game, 62-51 Saturday evening at South Charleston High School.
The Patriots used a 9-0 run midway through the fourth quarter to build a ten-point lead that they would not relinquish. Pinkett scored seven points during that decisive run.
“I am thinking that I am not trading benches”, said George Washington head coach Rick Greene on Pinkett’s play. “Alex (Yoakum) did a great job early for us. Ben (Nicol) in the third quarter, he got going offensively and scoring points, that takes a lot of pressure off our guards. I think they are the best backcourt in the state or as good as anybody.”
Huntington used an 8-0 first quarter run to take a 15-13 lead after the opening stanza. GW responded with an 11-0 second quarter run to take a four-point lead but the Highlanders scored the final seven points in the frame and led 27-24 at halftime.
A buzzer-beating three-pointer from Pinkett gave the Patriots a 43-41 lead at the end of three quarters. Huntington trailed 45-44 at the seven-minute mark before GW pulled away with their nine-point run.
Yoakum scored 17 points for the Patriots (10-1) while Taran Fitzpatrick added 10 points.
“If we can get 8-12 points out of those forwards, then we feel like that takes a lot of pressure off our guards.”
Jaylen Motley led Huntington (9-2) with 17 points while Amare Smith added a dozen.
Playing in their seventh MSAC final, George Washington completed a successful title defense after winning the title last winter.
“There’s two seasons. And in our minds, we just won the regular season. Obviously, that gives you confidence. I think it helps to play in this game no matter what, because this is the pressure for a championship. I think it will help and will build more momentum. I think conference championships are really important. It is really hard to win one. You have to be really consistent all year and you have to be ready to go on a certain night.”