FAIRMONT, W.Va. — Senior guard Darrell Claybrook scored 18 of his career-best 27 points in the first half as Fairmont Senior improved to 2-0 with an 80-50 win over Elkins. Both teams represented the Big 10 Conference in the Class AAA state tournament last March.
Claybrook hit buzzer-beating shots to end the first and second quarters and he connected on a trio of three-pointers in the opening half.
“Darrell does it all. He’s our best defender and he’s got to defend,” said Fairmont Senior head coach Dave Retton. “That’s one thing that has been strong in our program. Just look at the last 10, 12, 15 years, our top offensive players are our top defenders. You could go list the names and Darrell, he’s in that category as well.”
The Polar Bears (2-0) used a 15-0 run spanning the first and second quarters, building a double-digit lead they would keep for the remainder of the game. FSHS led 19-11 after one quarter and 37-22 at halftime.
“We were able to keep them with one shot. That was very important. And we thought our fast break looked very good tonight. We were able to get the ball out, get some mismatches and get some numbers. At the same time, when we had to execute our half court offense, I thought our guys did a good job being patient and sharing the ball with their teammates.”
Landon Morris (17 points) and Cameron Ferguson (11 points) joined Claybrook scoring in double figures for the Polar Bears.
After advancing to the Class AAA semifinals in 2025, Retton is working with a younger roster that features three new starters.
“It is starting. We talk about having a sense of urgency and wanting to be really good soon. But you can’t just snap your fingers. My dad used to say, ‘If everybody would be great, we wouldn’t need practice’. We’d have one practice and your team would be great. It doesn’t work that way. We’ve just got to continue to put the work in every day. Tomorrow’s practice is the most important practice of the year.”
Fairmont Senior will visit defending Class AAA state champion Bridgeport on Friday.
“It is a great test. They are really good defensively. They share the ball. They are well-disciplined and very well-coached. We’ve certainly got to bring our game to Bridgeport, for sure.”
Dreyton Boggs led Elkins (0-1) with 22 points while Landon Shreve added 14 points.