Number 1 Seed George Washington Takes On Number 3 Spring Mills For The AAAA Championship
The 2026 WVSSAC boys basketball state tournament came down to this: the top seed George Washington Patriots (22-2) versus the third seed Spring Mills Cardinals (21-2) battling for the AAAA title on Saturday night in Charleston. This is a rematch nobody expected to get so early, and the stakes are as high as they come. Spring Mills won last year's final 41-38, so George Washington has some serious revenge on their mind heading into this one.
How They Got Here
George Washington earned their spot with two impressive tournament wins. They knocked off the eighth seed Huntington and then the four seed Washington to punch their ticket to the championship game. Spring Mills, meanwhile, took down the sixth seed University and the second seed Morgantown on their way to Saturday's final. Both teams are battle tested, and both teams are hungry.
First Half Fireworks
Noah Lewis got the Patriots on the board right away with a three pointer to start things off. But Spring Mills responded with pure heat. The Cardinals went on a 13-0 run in just over three minutes, with three pointers from Xavier Anderson and K'nes Stovall putting them in control. George Washington went silent for over five minutes without a bucket, and Spring Mills led 17-5.
George Washington woke up in the second quarter. Lewis finally broke the scoring drought with a three and a layup, but the Patriots still trailed 19-14 with 5:26 left in the half. Then Dominic Sprouse took over. He hit a three from the top of the key to cut it to two, and Lewis followed with back to back free throws. Sprouse scored again to give George Washington the lead. The Patriots ripped off a 16-2 run to flip the script. Spring Mills answered with a three from Akwasi Opoku-Achampong to go up 22-21, but Sprouse hit another three to put GW back on top 24-22. The half ended with Spring Mills missing their final shot, and Tyler Jones heading to the locker room with his arms up, seemingly frustrated about no foul call. Halftime score: George Washington 26, Spring Mills 22.
What's Next
George Washington is up three at the break, and the second half is going to be intense. Both teams are shooting over 40% percent. Lewis showed off his ability to drive to the basket and attack the boards. This championship is far from decided.
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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.