Wheeling, W. Va. - The first half of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) schedule wraps up this weekend before the conference breaks for Christmas. The Wheeling University Men's Basketball team (4-5, 1-3) is looking to end the first half strong as they hit the road to face The University of Charleston with tip-off at 4 PM. The Cardinals look to get back in the win column before the Christmas break, as they set themselves up for the stretch tournament run in January and February.
On Wednesday night, the team welcomed West Virginia State and battled back and forth with the Yellow Jackets early on. After getting the opening two points of the game, West Virginia State would take the lead and didn't give it up for the rest of the half. However, the Cardinals were able to keep things close throughout the half, never letting the Yellow Jackets hold more than a seven-point lead and headed into the locker room trailing 40-33. Wheeling had an efficient opening half, shooting 36.84% from the floor, and would raise their game in the second half. They shot 48.28% from the floor over the final 20 minutes and outscored the Yellow Jackets 50-45. They would make it a one-point game with 16 seconds to go, but that was as close as they got as a free throw from Miguel Martinez brought the game to its final score of 85-83.
Despite the loss, it was a big day for junior S.J. Hutchinson, who set a new career high with 22 points, while being the Cardinal's most efficient shooter on the day. He shot 6-10 (60%) from the floor while adding a 2-3 (66.7%) mark from beyond the arc to complete the big day. It was the sixth time this season that Hutchinson has been in double digits this season, and the second time that he has gone over the 18-point mark. Over his last four games, Hutchinson has put on a display from beyond the arc, hitting two or more threes in each game and shooting 47.1% from beyond the arc. Hutchinson has been a spark off the bench for the team this season and looks to continue being that strong six-man for Head Coach Chris Richardson moving forward.
Point guard Sean Ealy continued being a leader for the Cardinal's offense this season, putting up 20 points of his own in the effort. Ealy has been the team's leading scorer throughout the season, averaging 16.7PPG this season, and went over the 20-point mark for the third time this season. Over his last four games, Ealy is averaging 19.0 PPG and has hit the 20-point mark twice as he continues to lead the way for the Cardinals. The final double-digit scorer for the Cardinals was William Gabbert, who added 14 points on the effort. It was his sixth straight double digit performance of the season and marked the fourth straight game where Gabbert went over the 14-point mark. He sits right behind Ealy, averaging 12.8 PPG, putting himself on a record scoring pace this season.
As they enter the final conference game of the first half, the Cardinals find themselves in position to move up down the stretch. While they currently sit tied for ninth in the conference with Glenville State, they are within one game of being as high as #5 in the conference, and a win on Saturday could elevate them heading into the Christmas break. The Cardinals sat at the #9 seed after the regular season concluded in 2023-2024 and are looking to get into one of the top six spots this season to earn a first round bye. A win on Saturday would go a long way to setting themselves in position to do just that down the final conference stretch run.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Golden Eagles are meeting for the 44th time in program history on Saturday, with Charleston leading the all-time series at 23-20. The Cardinals have a slight disadvantage in road games during that stretch, going 9-10 away from the Alma Grace McDonough Center and look for their first road win against Charleston since March 4th, 2018. It has been a high scoring series for the Cardinals, averaging 76.4 PPG this season, and they look to continue that trend this time around.
Their last meeting came on January 31st, 2024, in a game that Charleston would win 101-80 in Charleston, West Virginia. Former Cardinal Marcus Johnson would lead the way, finishing with 18 points while pacing the defensive effort with nine rebounds. Caleb Murray would put together a big day from three-point range, putting up 13 points and going 4-8 from beyond the arc, while Sean Ealy and Tee Harris Jr. Each put up 10 points in the effort.
The Details
Tip-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for 4 PM inside the Wehrle Innovation Center on the campus of the University of Charleston. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
