The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia

High School Sports

April 3, 2010

Falcons fall to Findlay

MSA’s chase for championship ends

From Staff and Wire Reports Register-Herald Photographer

BALTIMORE — The Cinderella run is over.

Defending tournament champion Findlay Prep (Nev.) defeated underdog Mountain State Academy 68-53 Friday in the semifinals of the ESPN RISE National Invitational high school basketball tournament.

The game was televised on ESPN2.

MSA (22-4) had advanced to the semis with an upset quarterfinal victory over No. 3 seed Oak Hill Academy 59-53 on Thursday.

No. 2 seed Findlay (31-2) advanced to today’s tournament championship game. The Pilots will face Montverde (Fla.) at 10:30 a.m. in a game to be televised on ESPN.

Mountain State Academy coach Rodney Crawford was unavailable for comment..

The Falcons went on a 10-3 run and took an 18-15 lead early in the second quarter. But Findlay recovered and MSA trailed 50-34 heading into the fourth quarter.

MSA cut the Findlay lead to eight points with four minutes remaining, but couldn’t get any closer.

Justin Martin led the Falcons with 14 points, four assists and three steals. Anthony Bennett scored 10 points and pulled down four rebounds.

David Nyarsuk tallied eight points, six rebounds and four blocked shots in just 17 minutes.

Martin, a 6-6 wing, is a Xavier recruit while Nyarsuk, a 7-1 center, has signed with West Virginia.

Findlay Prep’s lineup boasts two McDonald’s All-Americans, Cory Joseph and Tristan Thompson.

Joseph poured in 32 points on 11-of-23 shooting, including three 3s. Thompson was limited to two points in the first three quarters before finishing with nine points and 10 rebounds.

Thompson has signed with Texas while Joseph is undecided.

Nick Johnson contributed 11 points, five steals and four rebounds, while Godwin Okonji added four points, nine rebounds and three blocks for Findlay.

The future looks bright for Mountain State Academy. The Falcons have a pair of sophomores who are expected to be hotly recruited student-athletes as well.

Bennett is a 6-foot-7 power forward and wing while Ronald Ross is a 6-3 point guard.



FINDLAY PREP (Nev.) 68,

MOUNTAIN STATE ACADEMY 53

MOUNTAIN STATE ACADEMY (22-4)

Jabs Newby 0-1 0-0 0, Ahmad Ibrahim 2-9 0-0 4, Ronald Ross 2-15 2-2 6,  Anthony Bennett 4-5 2-2 10, David Nyarsuk 4-6 0-0 8, Obij Aget 1-1 0-0 2, Justin Martin 5-9 1-3 14,  Anthony Popovic 0-0 0-0 0, Remi Dibo 3-6 2-2 9. Totals 21-52 9-11 53.

FINDLAY PREP (31-2)

Marko Petrovic 4-8 0-0 9, Cory Joseph 11-23 7-7 32, Nick Johnson 2-7 7-10 11,  Tristian Thompson 3-7 3-6 9, Godwin Okonji 1-4 2-2 4, Nigel Williams-Goss 1-1 1-2 3, Thomas Laerke 0-1 0-0 0,  Winston Shepard 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-51 20-27 68.

Halftime—FP 32-25. 3-Point Goals—MSA 9-11 (Dibo 1-4, Ibrahim 0-2, Ross 0-1, Martin 1-3), FP 4-12 (Joseph 3-7, Petrovic 1-4, Johnson 0-1). Fouled Out—None.  Rebounds—MSA 29 (Nyarsuk 6), FP 40 (Okonji 9). Assists—MSA 8 (Ross 4, Martin 4), FP 6 (Petrovic 2). Total Fouls—MSA 21,  FP 15.

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