Glenville, W. Va. - It was a battle that came down to the wire on Wednesday night as the Wheeling University Men's Basketball team (5-9, 2-6) took on Glenville State on Wednesday night. The Cardinals had the ball with 12 seconds remaining but couldn't hit the game winning shot as they fell to the Pioneers 77-76. The Cardinals held a one-point advantage heading into halftime and shot just over 39% on the day as they dropped the one-point affair.
As the first half ended, Wheeling took their first lead since the first bucket of the day when Sean Ealy drove into the paint and hit a layup that sent the Cardinals into the locker room with a 38-37 lead. Kevin Coleman Jr. would keep that momentum going with the first bucket of the second half, but Glenville State would quickly retake the lead. The Pioneers put together a 7-0 run that made it 44-40 at the 16:26 mark. Wheeling would answer with a three-pointer from Marcus Johnson and tied the game on a Caleb Murray free throw to bring the score to 45-45 at the first media timeout. Ealy would hit a three-pointer to get the Cardinals back out in front and they held a three-point advantage at 50-47 with 13:38 to play. The lead would switch hands for the fourth time in the half on a Glenville State 9-3 run that made it 56-53 with 10 minutes to play.
The back and forth between the two teams would continue for the next five minutes, with Glenville State building a lead and Wheeling battling back. By the final media timeout, it was a 68-65 as Johnson drove into the paint for a layup. It would be part of an 8-0 Cardinal run as they got to within one point of the Pioneers at 68-67 with 3:34 to play. As the game came down to its final minute, Glenville State had a 74-73 lead and the Cardinals came up with a big stop as the Pioneer's Rye Gadd missed a three-pointer. The Cardinals came back down the floor and with 26 second left took the lead on a Jonhson three that made it a 76-74 game. Glenville State responded with a timeout and, with 12 seconds left were able to draw up a three-pointer from Dominiq Penn. The Cardinals quickly moved back down the floor and Johnson drove into the paint but missed on a layup with two seconds to play. However, it was knocked out of bounds and Wheeling had one more shot. Johnson would put up the jumper as time expired, but it ended up falling short as the Cardinals fell 77-76.
Leading the way for the Cardinals was Marcus Johnson, who came off the bench and scored 28 points while leading the team with seven rebounds. It was the second highest point total for the junior this season as he shot 11-24 from the floor while making a team-high three three-pointers. The other Cardinal to finish in double figures was Sean Ealy, who added 14 points and shot 75% (6-8) from the floor. The Cardinals effectively spread the ball around throughout the night, with nine different Cardinals scoring on the night and six players finishing with at least one assist. Alex Smith and Kevin Coleman Jr rounded out the night, each finishing with six rebounds, to round out the effort.
Things would start out in the Cardinal's favor as freshman Tee Harris hit a layup 30 seconds in to give the Cardinals a 2-0 advantage. However, Glenville State also got started strong, going on a 9-0 run following that opening shot to make it a 9-2 game. Ealy would break the run with a layup and free throw but by the first media timeout, it was an 11-5 Glenville State lead. The Cardinals stayed within five points through the first seven minutes of play as the score sat at 16-12 after a Johnson layup. Glenville State would hit another run, scoring five straight points and put the Cardinals behind and a jumper by SJ Hutchinson would make it 21-14 with 10 minutes to play. The Cardinals would have to slowly battle back and they began to chip away at the Glenville State lead. After the Pioneers extended their lead to 27-16, Wheeling began to battle their way back.
William Gabbert would hit a three-pointer at the 7:36 mark and kicked off an 8-2 run that made it a 29-24 affair. Glenville State would hold a 31-24 lead at the final media timeout, but the Cardinals continued to battle they went on an 8-0 run and a jumper at the 2:38 mark to give the Cardinals a 32-31 lead. The lead would change hands four more times during the final two and a half minutes until things were tied up at 36-36 with 21 seconds to play. Glenville State's Rye Gadd would hit his final free throw to put Glenville State up 37-36. Wheeling would drive down the floor and as time expired Ealy put up a layup and the Cardinals would lead 38-37 at half. However, they would be outscored 40-38 over the final 20 minutes, leading to the defeat.
The Wheeling University Men's Basketball team returns to action on Saturday, January 20th, when they take on Concord at 4 PM.
