Wheeling, W. Va. - As the regular season starts to wind down, the Wheeling University Men's Basketball team (5-18, 3-14) will play at home in just two of their final five contests. The Cardinals play one of those home contests on Saturday, February 11th, when they host Glenville State with tip-off at 4 PM. The Cardinals currently sit one game out of the coveted #10 seed and will look to get back on track in what is shaping up to be a big Mountain East Conference (MEC) matchup.

Last time out, Wheeling would take on Concord in a classic matchup that saw the two teams battle into overtime. Wheeling came out of the gate firing, scoring nine of the first 10 points of the contest, and rode that offensive success through the first half. They put up 51 points over the first 20 minutes of play and the two teams headed to the locker room with the score sitting at 51-43. Wheeling would lead all the way up to the five-minute mark of the second half, but eventually Concord caught up and would send the game into overtime. Wheeling would push ahead to a 90-88 lead, but a 9-0 run from Concord created the separation they needed. Wheeling would fall 101-98 and dropped their record to 3-14 in MEC play.

Leading the way on this big offensive day was senior John Korte who continued his hot stretch in 2023. He scored 25 points on the night and reached the 20-point mark for the third time in the last five games. Korte continues to be one of the top scorers in the MEC, sitting third in the conference with an average of 20.2 points per game. Since the 2023 portion of the schedule began, Korte has upped that average to 22.9 points per game, including two games where he scored 30+ points along with one 40-point effort. Korte will play a big role in the team's offensive success down the stretch as he tries to get back to the tournament for the fourth time in his career.

Overall, the Cardinals had four double figure scorers in the game, including a big game from William Gabbert in his third start of the season. The sophomore put up 14 points in the game and was the Cardinal's most efficient shooter on the floor, shooting 5-8. Kevin Coleman Jr. continued his string of success on the floor as well, adding 16 points to the offense's effort on the day. The Cardinals have shown great depth off their bench this season, giving them many opportunities to find the basket as they come down the stretch.

As things stand right now, the Cardinals are currently one game out of an MEC playoff spot, sitting behind Frostburg State. With five games left on the schedule, the Cardinals are looking to leapfrog the Bobcats and get into the First Round of the tournament. The two teams meet head-to-head on senior day on Saturday, February 18th, but with four other games on the schedule, there is still a lot to be decided. The Cardinals are looking to play their best basketball down the stretch in hopes of claiming that spot.

The Matchup

The Cardinals and Pioneers will be meeting for the 38th time in program history on Saturday and the second time so far during the 2022-23 season. Wheeling currently leads the all-time series with a record of 22-15 and adds an even more impressive 13-3 record at home against the Pioneers. Glenville State has gotten the better of the recent series, winning three of the last five games, as the Cardinals look to flip the script.

In their first meeting of the year, Glenville State would pick up the victory on their home floor 100-76. John Korte, S.J. Hutchinson, and Brent Price all had big showings in that game, scoring 16 points apiece in the loss. Marcus Johnson would lead the team with six rebounds in the game while Trey Stoffer led the passing game with three assists.

The Details

Tip-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for 4 PM inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.