WHEELING, W.Va. (Feb. 17) – A second-half rally propelled the Cardinals to a crucial 89-85 win over Frostburg State Wednesday night inside the McDonough Center.
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The win improves the Wheeling University men's basketball team to 3-8 overall, while the Bobcats also sit at 3-8 following the loss.
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Four Cardinals scored in double-figures, led by senior guard
Jarett Haines (Bronx, N.Y./New Rochelle). Haines scored a season-high 25 points on 9-of-15 shooting and added six assists, four rebounds and three steals. Haines knocked down 5-of-7 from beyond-the-arc in the win.
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Sophomore
John Korte (Watertown, Mass./Watertown) established a career-high with 19 points, including a perfect 11-for-11 at the charity stripe, with seven rebounds. Senior guard
Jordan Reid (Silver Spring, Md./Albert Einstein) scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half, while junior guard
Jay Gentry (Milwaukee, Wisc./Brown Deer) chipped in 10 points.
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The score was tied at 10-10 five minutes into the game. Frostburg State made the first run of the evening with an 11-2 spurt to open up a 21-12 lead at the 11:44-mark of the first half.
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The Bobcats led 28-17 when the Cardinals made their first run of the game. Wheeling out-scored Frostburg State 22-11 over the next several minutes to take its first lead of the game at 39-38 with 2:21 remaining in the first half. Despite the run, the Bobcats knocked down two three pointers in the final minute to head into the locker rooms with a 44-40 lead.
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Frostburg State led by as many as nine, 52-43, with 17:41 to play in the game. Despite the Cardinals going on a run to pull within two at 63-61 with just over 11 minutes on the clock, the Bobcats remaining on top. Wheeling finally managed to take its first lead of the second half with 5:47 left in the contest on a basket-and-one by Reid that made the score 78-77.
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The Bobcats reclaimed the lead at 81-78 with 4:55 left in the game, when Frostburg State burned its final timeout of the game. The Cardinals immediately answered back with another basket-and-one, this time by Korte, to knot the score at 81-81.
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Wheeling managed to make enough plays down the stretch to win the game. The Cardinals led 85-85 with 24 seconds left in the game and the shot-clock winding down when junior
Brent Price (Wheeling, W.Va./Central) buried a pull-up jumper to give the Cardinals a three-point lead.
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Frostburg State nearly had a chance to tie the game on a drive to the basket and a foul, but the layup attempt rimmed out and the Bobcats failed to convert either free-throw attempt. Reid sealed the game on the other end with a free throw to complete the four-point win for the Cards.
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Both teams shot the ball well from the field. Wheeling finished 29 of 62 (47 percent), while Frostburg State shot 32 of 62 (52 percent) on the night.
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The Cardinals feasted at the free-throw line. Wheeling shot 24 of 33 (73 percent), compared to the 9-of-13 (69 percent) posted by the Bobcats.
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Agyei Edwards of Frostburg State carried his team. He finished with a game-high 33 points and made 6-of-10 from long range.
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The Cardinals will return to the McDonough Center court on Saturday, February 20 for a pivotal Mountain East Conference North Division matchup with Notre Dame (Ohio) at 4:30 p.m.
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