Wheeling, W. Va. – Over the last week, the Wheeling University Men's Basketball team (7-14, 4-11) have hit their groove, picking up back-to-back wins over West Virginia Wesleyan and Davis & Elkins. They look to keep that momentum going on a special Valentine's Day matchup Wednesday as they hit the road to face Fairmont State at 7:30 PM. The team has already eclipsed their win total for the entire 2022-23 campaign and now have their sites set on inching closer to locking down a spot in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) Tournament.
Last time out, the Cardinals battled their way to a big road victory over Davis & Elkins College, 85-82. The Cardinals fell behind by as much as 20-12 early, but were able to slowly battle back throughout the final 10 minutes of the first half. A three-pointer with 6:17 left on the clock gave them their first lead of the day and by halftime, the Cardinals were staked to a 37-33 advantage. However, both offenses came to play in the second half, with the two teams combining for 97 points over the final 20 minutes of play. The Cardinals would never give up the lead after the break and held off a 48-point Senator's second half attack as they came away with an 85-82 victory. It was the first time the Cardinals had won back-to-back games since January 21st and 25th of 2022 when they beat West Liberty and West Virginia Wesleyan in back-to-back games.Last time out, the Cardinals battled their way to a big road win over Davis & Elkins, 85-82. The Cardinals
Leading the way for the Cardinals was senior Marcus Johnson, who finished with his sixth double-double of the season. He led the way with 24 points and 10 rebounds on the night, while shooting 40% from the floor. Of his six shots made on the night, three of those came from three-point range, as he finished 3-5 from beyond the arc and an impressive 9-11 from the free throw line. After reaching the 1,000-career point mark for his collegiate career earlier this season, Johnson is approaching the 1,000-career point mark for his Wheeling career. He is just 34 points shy of doing just that and with 50 career games played as a Cardinal, he is one of the fastest to reach that mark in program history.
Behind Johnson were the scoring tandem of Sean Ealy and Tee Harris, who each finished with 17 points in the winning effort. Since being inserted into the starting lineup vs. West Virginia State due to injury, Harris has been a big addition to the Cardinal's offense down the stretch. Over his last four games, he is averaging 16.25 points per game, including scoring a career-high 22 points against West Virginia Wesleyan on February 7th. Ealy also added 17 points in the effort and finished with a season-high seven rebounds to round out the day. Ealy has stepped up big as the Cardinal's point guard over the last few weeks and has helped lead the offense during this run.
With the recent win surge, the Cardinals are inching closer to a possible first round bye. They currently sit just three games back of the #6 seed and would need to continue their winning ways to get there. They currently hold the #9 seed in the conference, with a two-game lead over Frostburg State. Of their remaining six games, four come against teams that sit higher than them in the conference standings, and the Cardinals look to make a push as the regular season draws to a close. As they enter play on Wednesday night, the Cardinals have a magic number of four as they try to clinch a playoff spot. Any combination of four Wheeling wins or four West Virginia Wesleyan losses would earn the Cardinals a trip back to WesBanco Arena as they try and chase down an MEC playoff berth.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Falcons are meeting for the 53rd time in program history on Wednesday, and the second time during the 2023-2024 season. As the season series shifts to Fairmont State, the Falcons have faired better at home, as the Cardinals hold a 7-19 record in 36 previous matchups. After falling once to the Falcons this season, the Cardinals will once again try to break the 11-game skid against Fairmont State, dating back to December 5th, 2018.
In their first meeting of the season, it was Fairmont State who came out victorious with am 84-82 win. The Cardinals were led by Marcus Johnson in the effort, who finished with 21 points and 15 rebounds in the effort. Caleb Murray was right behind him with a big game off the bench, scoring 17 points, while former Cardinal Trey Stoffer finished with 11 points on the night. The Cardinals will be looking for a split of the season series and to keep their momentum going down the stretch.
The Details
Tip-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for 7:30 PM inside the Feaster Center on the campus of Fairmont State University. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
