At a stellar season’s end, why Morehead State thinks even better days are ahead
Ten years later, it felt like Morehead State’s March Madness “upset mojo” still lived.
When Eagles guards Skyelar Potter and Ta’lon Cooper scored on back-to-back layups 16 seconds apart, the No. 14 seed Eagles were within one point, 46-45, of No. 3 seed West Virginia with 13:59 left in an NCAA Tournament round-of-64 matchup.
It seemed possible that the 2021 Eagles were going to replicate the wizardry that propelled MSU to a stunning ouster of Louisville in the 2011 NCAA tourney.
Alas, it turned out that West Virginia’s “McBride magic” was stronger than Morehead’s upset mojo.
Miles McBride scored 18 of his game-high 30 points in the second half to spark WVU to an 84-67 victory over Morehead State on Friday night at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
The 900th career victory for West Virginia head man Bob Huggins will propel the Mountaineers (19-9) to Sunday’s Midwest Region round of 32 against No. 11 seed Syracuse (17-9), which walloped No. 6 San Diego State 78-62.
Morehead State ends one of the best seasons in school history at 23-8.
“I hope the nation takes away that we have a tough, gritty group,” Morehead State Coach Preston Spradlin said afterward. “Our program is built on toughness and togetherness. Despite the score, I thought we were still able to put that on display tonight.”
The reasons Johni Broome, DeVon Cooper and Co. were not able to do to West Virginia what Kenneth Faried, Demonte Harper and crew did to Louisville a decade ago came down to two factors.
The first was McBride. A 6-foot-2, 200-pound sophomore out of Cincinnati, the West Virginia guard turned in a scintillating performance.
McBride hit 11 of 17 shots, three of four three-pointers and five of six foul shots. In addition to his 30 points, he also had six rebounds, six assists, three steals — and zero turnovers.
After Morehead pulled within one, McBride contributed a personal six-point trip to an 11-0 West Virginia run that broke the game open.
The six points on one trip down the court occurred after McBride:
1. stole the ball and scored a layup;
2. cashed two free throws after Morehead’s DeVon Cooper was called for a flagrant-one foul for whacking (inadvertently, it appeared) McBride in the head as he was scoring;
3. made two more free throws after he inbounded the ball to himself off the back of MSU’s KJ Hunt under the bucket and was subsequently fouled to prevent another layup.
The other thing that ended Morehead’s season was turnovers. The Eagles gave the ball away 18 times, which led to a 24-9 West Virginia advantage in points after miscues.
“We knew we needed to take care of the ball to stay in the game with them — and we just kind of failed to do that,” Spradlin said.
What the season-ending loss should not obscure is what an uplifting story Morehead State basketball produced in 2020-21.
MSU was picked to finish eighth in the OVC in the preseason poll of league coaches and publicists. Instead, the Eagles won 19 of their final 21 games and the league tournament.
Morehead State Athletics Director Jaime Gordon said the Eagles’ achievements have had a profound meaning in what has been a challenging year on and around the MSU campus.
“The impact of COVID(-19), it’s really been felt in a big way around here,” Gordon said. “Then, there’s been the recent flooding that Eastern Kentucky has managed and dealt with. Having the local team have this type of success, I think it has really meant a lot to people in our region.”
Donnie Tyndall, who coached Morehead State to the NCAA tourney upset of Louisville in 2011, says that electric moment was made possible because of the experience the Faried/Harper nucleus gained when the Eagles played in the 2009 Big Dance.
A similar dynamic could emerge for MSU out of this season. Of Morehead State’s eight-man rotation, only one player, starting power forward James Baker, is a senior. With the NCAA’s “free year” of eligibility granted in response to COVID-19, Baker, too, can return next season.
Asked about his team’s future, Spradlin said “without question, it’s in the back of everybody’s mind. We do have a lot of really good pieces and guys coming back.”
Those “good guys” displayed ample upside, even in defeat, against West Virginia.
Morehead star freshman big man Broome battled West Virginia center Derek Culver — a First Team All-Big 12 selection — to a draw. The 6-10 Broome finished with 10 points, nine rebounds and three blocks, while Culver had 12 points, seven boards and three blocks.
MSU perimeter players DeVon Cooper (21 points), Potter (18) and Ta’lon Cooper (nine points, four assists) showed the ability to make plays in the half-court against Big 12 defenders.
While there are no guarantees in a one-bid conference such as the OVC, it is possible that this year’s MSU visit to March Madness could be a prelude for something even bigger in 2021-22.
“We are a close-knit team,” DeVon Cooper said. “We showed that throughout the year with our play. We are going to keep that togetherness and carry that on to next year. We are going to do the same thing and we are going to be right back here next year.”
This story was originally published March 20, 2021 at 7:24 AM.
