Box Score WHEELING, W.Va.---The Wheeling Jesuit men's basketball team will be making the trip to Charleston, W.Va., advancing to the quarterfinal round of the WVIAC Men's Basketball Tournament at the Charleston Civic Center. The No. 4 seeded Cardinals used the final two minutes of Tuesday evening's game at the Alma Grace McDonough Center to claim a 77-69 victory over the No. 13 seeded Senators of Davis & Elkins College.
 
“I'm very proud of our team's toughness and our seniors who did a great job leading us,” said Head Coach Danny Sancomb. “It's the playoffs, so we knew it would be a tough game. Davis & Elkins shot the ball extremely well, especially in the first half.”
 
Eric Siefert knocked down five of Jesuit's last seven field goals which fueled a comeback and led the Cardinals' offense with 17 points. Joe Prati followed with 16 points and five rebounds while Ben Siefert added 11 points, eight assists and five rebounds. Recardo Gaddy and Andre Harris tallied nine points apiece while Justin Fritts and Tim Goff tossed in seven and six, respectively. Darin Harris rounded out the offensive efforts with two points.
 
“Eric did a great job tonight getting in the lane and scoring points for us,” Coach Sancomb stated. “We really did a good job defensively late in the game by packing the lane and causing turnovers. Those two things were the difference tonight.”
 
Joe Prati opened the game with a 3-pointer and followed with another trifecta after a Goff lay-in. Ben Siefert had a hand in the Cardinals' first four field goals, dishing out three assists and knocking down a long range shot for the Cardinals third 3-point bucket. Goff added a layup, and Gaddy sent back-to-back shots through the cylinder from beyond the 3-point arc while Fritts added a jumper for a 23-12 advantage.
 
Davis & Elkins responded with a 12-0 run to establish a 24-23 lead, and the two teams traded buckets. Darin Harris ended the Senator run, but a 3-pointer by D&E pushed the lead to 27-25. With the score knotted at 31 apiece, Prati sparked a 6-0 run with a layup. Eric Siefert followed with a lay-in and added a pair of free throws. Eric Siefert extended Jesuit's lead to 39-33, however a 3-pointer in the final 30-seconds by the Senators madit 39-36 at halftime.
 
Davis & Elkins shot a sizzling 79-percent from the field on 15-of-19 shots, and notched a 71-percent, 5-for-7 effort from behind the 3-point stripe. The Cardinals also shot the ball well in the opening half, connecting on 15-for-24 shots for a 63-percent effort with a 42-percent, 5-for-12 showing from downtown.
 
In the second half, Ben Sifert opened with a bucket and Goff followed with a layup for a 43-36 Cardinal advantage. WJU held a small lead until the 12:53 mark when D&E grabbed a one point advantage 54-53. The Cardinals immediately tied the game, 54-54, but another long distance shot from the Senators made the score 57-54. D&E continued control the scoreboard, leading by as many as three points, until an Andre Harris reverse layup lifted the Cardinals to a 64-63 advantage.
 
On the ensuing possession, the Senators regained the lead, and the two teams traded blows to a 67-67 stalemate. Eric Siefert tied the game with an old-fashioned 3-point play, and Andre Harris lifted the Cardinals to a two point advantage, 69-67, with 1:27 left to play. The Cardinals followed with eight free throws to ice the game. Prati drained the first and final set of free throws while Andre Harris and Ben Siefert added two each.
 
D'Quan Lynch led the Senators with 20 points which included a 4-for-6 showing from behind the 3-point arc. Devin Miller followed with 18 points while Igor Premasunac and Shane Brown chipped in 12 points each.
 
The No. 4 Seeded Cardinals will play the No. 5 seeded University of Charleston Golden Eagles on Thursday, February 28 at the Charleston Civic Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.