Wheeling, W. Va. - The month of January has been a road heavy stretch for the Wheeling University Men's Basketball team (5-13, 4-8), having had to play four of their last five games on the road. They will continue that stretch on Wednesday when they hit the road once again to take on West Virginia Wesleyan at 7:30 pm. This will be the final road game of January for the Cardinals, and they look to end the stretch with momentum on their side.
Last time they took the court, they battled rival West Liberty for the first time during the 2022 season and took a 109-85 loss. The Cardinals continued their string of strong second half performances, with 44 points over the final 20 minutes, but a 59-point first half by the Hilltoppers was just too much to overcome. It was a hard-fought game for the entire team, but one player took his game to the next level in the performance.
Senior Jordan Reid scored a season-high 31 points in the loss, shot 60% from the floor, and added a 2-5 mark from three-point range. Reid has been one of those go-to guys for the Cardinals this season and eclipsed the 30-point mark for the first time this season. With the effort, Reid moved up the Cardinals all-time scoring list, and now sits 31st all-time on the Wheeling Men's Basketball scoring list. It has been a great year for Reid, and he is showing no signs of slowing down.
He got support from sophomore Andrew Taylor, who finished with 14 points and finished with three rebounds on the night. Taylor has been a consistent presence on the floor for the Cardinals in the second half of the season, averaging 11.4 points per game over his last five games. Junior John Korte led the defensive effort on the night with 10 rebounds, and just missed a double-double with eight points.
Head Coach Chris Richardson and his team are looking to play some of their best basketball at the end of January, and they will have a chance to get some of that momentum on their side. Their next two games come against opponents who are either tied with or below Wheeling in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) standings. Wheeling enters Wednesday's contest in a tie for eighth place in the conference and is looking to move up the standings before the playoff push.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Bobcats are meeting for the 41st time on Wednesday and Wheeling has the advantage with a record of 27-13. Earlier in the season, Wheeling got the better of West Virginia Wesleyan when they beat them 83-60. However, this will be the first matchup between the two teams in Buckhannon, West Virginia, a place where Wheeling has seen a lot of success. They are 13-5 when playing at West Virginia Wesleyan as opposed to their 10-6 record in Wheeling.
In their first game of the season, Wheeling used an all-around team effort, with five different players finishing the evening in double digits. Jordan Reid led the way with 18 points, while Jarett Haines (16), Jay Gentry (14), Brent Price (13), and Andrew Taylor (12) all finishing in double digits. It was a total team effort in the win and an effort that Wheeling is hoping to duplicate in their second meeting of the year.
The Details
Tip-off for Wednesday night's game is scheduled for 7:30 pm on the campus of West Virginia Wesleyan. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
