SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. (Nov. 9) The Wheeling Jesuit University men's basketball team fell 90-75 to Gannon in its season-opening game Friday night at Shepherd's Clarion Hotel Conference Challenge.

Sophomore Brendan Hoban's (Watertown, Mass./Millbrook School) led the Cardinals (0-1) with 23 points in the loss. Freshmen Franck Kamgain (Kansas City, Mo./DME Sports Acadmey) and Steve Cannady (Bowie, Md./St. Vincent Pallotti) each scored in double-figures with 19 and 15 points, respectively.

Gannon (1-0) scored the game's first four points, before the Cardinals mounted a big run to open up a 19-9 lead with 12:39 left in the first half. Wheeling Jesuit connected on 6-of-9 from the field during the run, including four three pointers. The Cards extended their lead to 30-15 over the next four minutes with a scoring stretch that was capped off with consecutive layups from Hoban.

The Golden Knights rallied back, out-scoring Wheeling Jesuit 18-2, to take a 33-32 lead with 1:48 left in the first half. Gannon held the Cardinals without a field goal and forced four turnovers during the six-minute run. Freshman guard Jay Gentry (Milwaukee, Wisc./Brown Deer) ended the drought with a three-pointer that reclaimed the lead at 35-33 with just over a minute remaining in the first half. Both teams traded free-throws in the final 60 seconds to send the game into halftime tied at 36-36.

Wheeling Jesuit held the lead for the first six minutes of the second half, including a 48-42 advantage with 15:42 left in the game. Gannon drew back within two points and converted a three-pointer at the 14-minute mark to gain its first lead of the second half at 52-51. The Cardinals quickly went back ahead at 53-52, but Gannon would go on to out-score WJU 38-to-22 over the final 13 minutes of the game to deal Head Coach John Peckinpaugh's Cardinals a season-opening loss.

WJU was held to just 4-of-17 shooting during the final 13 minutes of the game. Gannon managed to convert 15-of-20 attempts during the same stretch to propel itself to the win.

Gannon dominated the glass and finished with a 43-to-20 rebound advantage for the night.

Wheeling Jesuit for the night was 20-of-52 (38.5 percent) from the field, including a 13-of-33 (39.4 percent) performance from three-point range.

The Cardinals will look to get back on track tomorrow, Saturday, November 10 when they face Millersville to wrap up the event at Shepherd. The opening-tip is set for 4 p.m.