Box Score Wheeling, W.Va. – It was a tale of two streaks coming into Thursday night's women's basketball contest between University of Virginia-Wise and Wheeling Jesuit University. Jesuit looked to rebound from two straight losses, while UVA-Wise looked for its third straight win. Jesuit hit the boards hard and possessed an eye for the basket to beat the visiting Cavaliers 85-56.
Junior guard
Breanna Butler and Junior guard
Jaila Bryant both broke double digits as the Cardinals took a 42-30 lead into the intermission. Bryant led the Cardinals with 12 points, four assists, and two rebounds. Butler went 4 for 4 in the first half, connecting on 3 three-pointers. Sophomore forward
Jaana Motton pulled down five rebounds, had 6 points, and three steals.
Jesuit outrebounded UVA Wise 20-12. The Cardinals also outshot the Cavaliers 56.7% to 43.3% to go into the half up by 12.
Wheeling Jesuit came out gunning in the second half. Jesuit hit a blistering 83.3% of its shots from beyond the arc and posted a 72% field goal percentage. The Cardinals also dominated the boards pulling down 39 rebounds to UVA-Wise's 22.
Bryant finished the game with a game-high 22 points, connecting on 10 of 13 from the field. Butler made every shot she took on the night, going 6 of 6 from the field and making all 4 of her three-point attempts, and finishing the game with 17 points in 25 minutes of play.
Junior forward
Taylor Lubinsky also finished the game in double digits for the Cardinals. Lubinsky hit 2 of 3 three-point attempts, pulled down six rebounds, and finished the contest with 8 points.
"We bounced back big after our 3-point UC loss. We talked last practice about sharing the ball and we did a great job of that tonight. We also shot 10 of 16 from the arc in the second half. It was a great team performance," stated Head Coach Deb Buff.
The win brings the Cardinals' overall record to 12-7 and 9-6 in the Mountain East Conference. The Cardinals come down the stretch as they host Concord University this Saturday at 1pm in the McDonough Center.
