Unfinished Business: George Washington Takes Down Spring Mills in Epic Double-Overtime Title Game
No. 1 George Washington got their revenge Saturday night, and it was worth the wait. The Patriots outlasted No. 3 Spring Mills 64-58 in double overtime at the Charleston Coliseum to capture the Class AAAA boys' basketball state championship. This wasn't just any title. It was a rematch of last year's finals, and GW flipped the script in one of those rare sequels that actually lives up to the original.
The Rematch Nobody Expected to Go This Long
George Washington's Noah Lewis threw down a monster dunk in transition to put the Patriots up 56-52 in double overtime, and that play pretty much tells you everything about how this game went. Back and forth. Tense. Wild. This fifth state title in program history came after the Patriots lost to these same Cardinals last year, so there was definitely unfinished business on the line.
Spring Mills came in hot, too. The Cardinals had just torched Morgantown in the semifinals, shooting over 70% from the floor. They brought that same energy into the title game and looked scary early. After trailing just 5-2, Spring Mills went on a 15-0 scoring run and held GW scoreless for the final 5:36 of the first quarter to take a commanding 17-5 lead heading into the second.
Greene Takes the Blame, His Team Takes the Crown
George Washington coach Rick Greene didn't shy away from the early struggles. "We were down because of me," Greene said. "I'll take the blame for that, and these kids bailed me out." He admitted the defensive adjustments against Spring Mills' ball screens didn't land the way he'd hoped early on, but his team dug in and found their way back.
When the final buzzer hit, it wasn't just the coaches who celebrated. The entire roster sprinted straight into the student section, making it clear this was a community win, not just a team win. Greene hammered that point home in his postgame remarks, crediting his predecessor Coach Fred Aldridge for building the culture that made this run possible. "When we win something, it's a program win, and it's a community win," Greene said.
George Washington just avenged last year's heartbreak and added another championship banner to one of West Virginia's most storied programs. That's the kind of sequel that sticks with you.
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This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.