CHARLESTON, W.Va. — George Washington squandered chances to win Class AAAA at the end of regulation and the first overtime Saturday night in the state final against Spring Mills at the Charleston Coliseum.
The Patriots then got the better of the Cardinals in the second extra session to ensure no last-second heroics were necessary.
GW scored the first six points of double overtime, never trailed over the final 4 minutes and got a stellar showing from sophomore Dominic Sprouse, who made all 12 of his free-throw attempts and scored 28 points in a 64-58 victory.
“They’re not the kids of society now,” Patriots’ coach Rick Greene said. “They’re not looking for me. They’re just taking care of GW. Look at the culture. That is rare at any level. I’ve done this a ton of years. They’re very refreshing. They give you hope as an older coach that it’s not going to fall apart.”
One year after falling short by three points against the Cardinals in the title game, GWHS (24-2) capped the season exactly how it wanted to for the program’s fourth state championship since 2011.
The No. 3 Cardinals (21-3) could hardly have scripted a better start and dominated the entirety of the first quarter to lead 17-5.
Six Spring Mills players made a field goal in the opening frame, and one night after shooting 71 percent in a semifinal round win over Morgantown, the Cardinals shot 7 for 12 in the opening frame and were dominant defensively in holding GW to 2-for-9 shooting, while GW senior Noah Lewis accounted for all of his team’s points.
“We were down because of me. I take that,” Greene said. “They bailed me out. We wanted to do a little different defense with the way they set their screens and it was too much in that environment. That’s how we got down. We gave up too many open shots.”
That all changed in the second quarter, however, as Sprouse got going, making two thee-pointers in a 10-point period. GW changed its defense and generated better results, limiting the Cardinals to five points on 2-for-10 shooting as the Patriots built a 26-22 halftime lead.
“Basketball is a game of runs and we say that a lot. We went on a run and they answered with their run,” Cardinals’ coach Shannon Layton said.
Greene felt it was a matter of his team reverting back to its identity above all else.
“It was like we’re here for a reason, let’s go do what we do,” Greene said.
Lewis scored in the paint with 1:24 to play in the third, allowing GW to lead 34-29.
Spring Mills countered with five straight points from Tyler Jones and was even at 36 through three.
With the game tied at 42 late in regulation, Lewis drove to the basket and finished while being fouled, and then finished off the three-point play to leave his team in front by three.
On the ensuing possession, SMHS moved the ball and had the Patriots scrambling, before finding Akwasi Opoku-Achampong for a good look at a tying triple that swished through the net with 42 seconds.
“We say it’s making dominoes fall,” Opoku-Achampong said. “We were driving and kicking. They saw me and gave me one more and I just knocked it down.”
Lewis missed a challenged jumper just before time expired in regulation, sending the game to overtime knotted at 45.
GW led 52-50 in the first extra session, but K’nes Stovall scored from close range at the 1:25 mark to tie it.
Xavier Anderson’s steal with 29 seconds left got the Cardinals the ball back with a chance to win, but Stovall, Tyler Jones and Chase Jones missed shots outside the paint in the final 7 seconds.
“I’ve never called timeouts in a game where it comes down to the last shot, because to me that messes up the rhythm,” Layton said. “We got three cracks at it. If any shot would’ve went in, it would’ve been the best thing in the world.”
Sprouse scored 16 seconds into double overtime and Lewis doubled the lead 1:50 later when he came up with a steal near halfcourt and threw down a transition dunk in front of the Patriots’ student section.
“It’s a moment everyone dreams of,” Lewis said. “We were scrambling and I saw them throw it to Akwasi. I jumped the lane and made a play.“
After Sprouse made a layup with 1:04 remaining, Opoku-Achampong made a deep three to bring his team to within three and provide them with their first points of the second OT.
But Sprouse was 6 for 6 on free throws over the final 24 seconds to put to rest any thought of a late Spring Mills rally. Sprouse made all 12 of his free-throw attempts and scored a game-high 28 points.
“Every day, after practice we’re shooting 25, 30 free throws after we’re tired, just scrimmaged and don’t want to,” Sprouse said. “I’ve lived in that environment and I was not nervous to shoot them at all.”
Lewis scored 25 to go with 12 rebounds.
Opoku-Achampong scored 25 points and made half of his team’s 10 treys.
Stovall was the second-leading scorer with 10 off the bench.
The Cardinals have been involved in three consecutive competitive state championships and have a 1-2 record.
“We’re 70-5 the last three years. That’s a 93 percent winning percentage,” Layton said. “It’s tough, but super proud of these guys.”