Box Score
 
SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. – A fifteen-point comeback wasn't enough for the Wheeling Jesuit men's basketball team to upset Shepherd University on Saturday, falling to the Rams 75-71 to the Mountain East's 2^nd place team.
 
The loss snaps an eight-game winning streak for the Cardinals, putting them at 14-9 overall (11-8 MEC), and put them back down to 7^th in the conference, a game behind Glenville State who is up next for WJU on Thursday.
 
Leading the Cardinals was the always-reliable Eric Siefert who put in 22 points and had nine boards.  Tim Goff had his biggest night in a Cardinals jersey this season with 17, but the standout pair of Justin Fritts and Kyle Ritz had somewhat quiet nights putting in 10 each.
 
"I think we played harder in the second half, but were timid in the first half," said WJU Head Coach Danny Sancomb. "We set them up for uncontested shots, and didn't attack offensively. We have to be smarter, follow the game plan, and be ready to play at the start of the game."
 
WJU was indeed slow to come out of the gates in the first half, shooting 42% in the first half, and improving to 47% overall. Defensively however, they were unable to shut down Shepherd's Brantley Osborne who had a massive night going 9-14 on threes for a game-high of 31 points.
 
The Cardinals slow start crippled them until halftime, trailing by a score of 44-31 at the break.
 
The second half comeback began around the 6-minute mark when Tim Goff heated up and nailed a big three to bring the Cards within two points. Goff then tied the game off a Ram turnover with an easy layup to knot it up at 62-62.
 
The lead lasted until there was just one minute left on the clock when Shepherd retook the lead for good on a layup from Austin Cunningham.
 
The Cardinals return home with another chance to climb back up the conference ladder when they face an important game against Glenville State who sits two games up on them in the MEC table. The game is set to tip off at 7:30 PM on Thursday, 2/20.