West Liberty, W. Va. – On Friday, the Wheeling University Men's Basketball team (1-1, 0-0) opened their season with a tight win at the Atlantic Region Crossover at West Liberty. On Saturday, the script was flipped as despite a second half comeback attempt by the Cardinals, they fell to the Rams 66-65 and finish the Atlantic Region Crossover 1-1.

Coming out of halftime, the Cardinals trailed 34-32 and were looking to regain the lead for the first time since the 3:40 mark of the first half. Wheeling would take over shortly after halftime, going on a 9-2 run, that was started by a three-pointer from John Korte, that made it a 41-39 lead. However, Winston-Salem would battle back to tie the game a few moments later, as the back and forth continued throughout the second half. However, the downfall for the Cardinals in that second half would be there shooting from the floor. Over the final 20 minutes of play, the Cardinals shot 26.7% from the floor and just 10.1% from beyond the arc.

With under a minute to go, Wheeling was staked to a 65-63 lead, and had the ball off a chance to secure the win. They took the ball down to their end of the court and Jay Gentry attempted a three that could have extended the Cardinal lead to five with :30 to play. However, the shot fell short and Winston-Salem had a chance to win the game. They would hit the jumper to win the game with two seconds on the clock. Wheeling tried a deep shot from half court, but it didn't fall and Wheeling would end up dropping their first game of the season by that 66-65 score.

Graduate student Jordan Reid continued his hot start to the season, putting up 17 points and seven rebounds. Andrew Taylor secured the first Cardinals double-double of the season, putting up 15 points while grabbing 11 boards. Jarett Haines rounder out the to three scorers 13 points and tied for the team lead with 2 assists. The Cardinals continued to shoot the ball well from the charity stripe, shooting at a 75.9% clip. From the floor, they weren't as successful as last time out, shooting 37.7% and adding a 16.7% mark from beyond the arc. However, the offense continued to battle as they did in game one, and outscored the Rams 33-32, but it wasn't enough for a comeback.

In the first half of the game, Wheeling looked more like the team they were on Friday, hitting a nearly 50% clip from the floor. Because of their sharp shooting, Wheeling held the lead for 17 of the first 20 minutes of the game. They led by as much as 27-18 with 6:38 to go before halftime. However, Winston Salem slowly worked their way back into the game, and overtook the Cardinals with three minutes left in the half. In total, the Rams went on a 16-0 run that staked them to a 34-27 lead and left Wheeling trying to fight back. The Cardinals would add five more points before the end of the half, but it was too late to bounce back.

It would be that 16-0 run that did the Cardinals in, as even though they outscored the Rams in the second half, the deficit just wasn't enough to overcome. The Cardinals finished the Atlantic Region Crossover 1-1, and had a good showing by many of their top stars. Reid and Haines each had a pair of double-digit performances and Taylor produced the first double-double of the season. Wheeling showed they can go point for point with two very talented nonconference opponents, and will have a chance to clean things up with two more nonconference match-ups this week.

The Wheeling University Men's Basketball team is back in action on Wednesday when they travel to face Malone at 8 PM.