It would be easy to understand if Morgantown standout Sharron Young felt like he just had a full-circle type moment.

 

As a freshman for the Mohigans in 2021, Young was the sixth man for a team that lost the first-ever Class AAAA state championship game against George Washington when the Patriots’ Ben Nicol hit a shot at the buzzer for a 47-46 victory.

That was the last time Young and the Mohigans have lost on the Charleson Coliseum and Convention Center floor. On Saturday, Young delivered the game-winner that lifted Morgantown to its third straight AAAA title with a 35-32 victory in overtime.

 

Young only made 1-of-6 3s against Spring Mills. But he made the one that counted the most as he drained one with 13 seconds left to put Morgantown up 33-32. Teammate Izzy Everett hit two free throws to ice it.

 

Young, the frontrunner for the state player of the year award, picked up the first Class AAAA Most Valuable Player of the Tournament as he finished with 11 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and five steals in the title game.

 

In Morgantown’s 66-47 quarterfinal victory against Wheeling Park, Young had 17 points, four rebounds, eight assists and three steals. He followed that with 32 points, seven rebounds, two assists and four steals in a 71-56 victory against Huntington in the semifinals.

 

The Class AAA Tournament Most Valuable Player award seemed destined to come down between Zycheus Dobbs and Shady Spring’s Ammar Maxwell before the first game was even played at the Charleston Coliseum.

 

They have been the two best players on the two best teams all season long, so you couldn’t really go wrong with either no matter what the outcome of the title game was.

 

The award went to Dobbs, despite Shady pulling out a 58-55 win in overtime for the victory. It marked the third straight year the Polar Bears and Tigers played for the title with Senior winning the two prior to Saturday’s game.

 

All three were close. Two years ago, Dobbs hit a shot at the buzzer to give Senior a 60-59 victory. Last year, the Polar Bears made it two state championships in a row with a 47-42 win.

 

Dobbs made 11-of-12 shots from the floor in the Polar Bears’ 61-31 victory against Hampshire and finished with 28 points, four rebounds, five assists, three steals and three blocks.

 

He followed that up with 21 points (on 9-of-13 shooting), 10 rebounds, seven assists, four steals and two blocks in a 57-31 victory against East Fairmont in the semifinals.

 

Against Shady Spring, Dobbs had 15 points, six rebounds, six assists, two steals and seven blocks.

 

Maxwell had 14 points, 13 rebounds, a steal and two blocks in the championship game following 27 points, seven rebounds and four assists in a 52-30 win against North Marion and 17 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks in a 67-44 win against Nitro.

 

Charleston Catholic’s Jayallen Turner was named the Class AA Tournament MVP. He scored 12 points with seven rebounds, an assist and four steals to lead the Irish past Bluefield in the title game 49-32.

 

In the quarterfinals, Turner had 16 points with 13 rebounds, two assists, three steals and a block in a 52-39 victory against Trinity. Turner had 30 points on 10-of-13 shooting to go along with three rebounds, three assists and four steals in Catholic’s 49-37 win against Ravenswood in the semifinals.

 

The Class A MVP of the Tournament Award also went to a member of the runner-up team. Tucker County’s Ashton Lycliter won the honor despite the Mountain Lions falling to Tug Valley, 35-32, in the state championship game.

 

Lycliter had 12 points and 11 rebounds against Tug Valley. In the quarterfinals, he had 22 points on 11-of-12 shooting with 13 rebounds as Tucker defeated St. Josephs, 66-41. In the 70-41 semifinal victory against Webster County, Lycliter scored only four points but pulled down 17 rebounds.

 

Editor's Note: Photo of Morgantown's Brady Savage (left) and Sharron Young (right).