Wheeling, W. Va. - On December 17th, the Wheeling University Men's Basketball team (5-6, 1-4) headed into the winter break with a 92-56 win to close out the first half of the season. Christmas has been celebrated, the new year has been rung in, and the Cardinals are prepared to hit the court once again. They open the 2025 portion of their schedule on Saturday when they welcome Franciscan University into the Alma Grace McDonough Center at 3 PM, looking to build on their best first half start in five seasons.
After taking a tough loss against the University of Charleston in their first-half conference finale, the Cardinals would battle Bryant & Stratton college in their 2024 finale. The Cardinal's offense rolled throughout the day behind an efficient shooting effort that saw them shoot 46.6% (34-73) from the floor. The Cardinal's defense continued their strong play early, holding the Bobcats to single-digit points as they rode out to a 20-9 lead. The offense kept rolling, shooting 50% from the floor in the half, and headed into the locker room with a 46-24 advantage. As they went into the second half, Head Coach Chris Richardson got the chance to go to his bench. The Cardinals wouldn't miss a beat, putting up 46 more points and shooting 43.59% from the floor, as the Cardinals won 92-56.
The offensive effort was led by Tee Harris jr., who finished with a career-high 24 points in the effort. He got a lot of his work done under the net, finishing 10-16 (62.5%) from the floor, with only two of those 16 shots coming from three-point range. It is the second time this season that Harris has gotten over the 20-point mark, and the first time since November 26th when he put up 22 points against Point Park. Harris has continued his breakout season, sitting second on the team averaging 12.9 PPG, while leading the way with 8.0 Rebounds per game. He is the team's second most efficient shooter this season, shooting .446 from the floor, and looks to continue that efficiency into the second half.
Helping Harris lead the way throughout the season has been a pair of seniors in William Gabbert and Sean Ealy. Ealy is the Cardinal's leading scorer, averaging 18.0 PPG, and is coming off a 16-point effort against the Bobcats. He would lead the Cardinal's in efficiency on the day, going 6-8 (75%) from the floor including a 4-5 (80%) from beyond the arc, continuing a strong first half. William Gabert is putting together his best season in a Cardinal uniform, and added 10 points against Bryant & Stratton. The senior is averaging a career-best 12.1 PPG this season, while leading the team with a .467 mark from the floor. He has been a strong presence on both sides of the ball this season, adding 5.2 rebounds per game and four blocks.
After taking the mandatory seven-day NCAA DII break, the Cardinals have gotten back to the floor this past week preparing for the Barons. Head Coach Chris Richardson has noted his guy's energy coming out of the second half, and looks to take that energy onto the court. Wheeling enters play Saturday with the fifth highest margin in the conference at 2.8, allowing just 81.7 PPG while scoring 84.5 PPG. They have allowed the sixth fewest points per game this season, while scoring the seventh most points per game in the conference as they get set for their 12th game of the season. With three of their next four games coming inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center, the Cardinals look to take advantage of the home stretch as they begin the road to the MEC Tournament.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Barons are meeting for the third time in program history on Saturday, with Wheeling leading the all-time series at 2-0. Each of the first two matchups have come inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center, with the Cardinals averaging 91 PPG over those first two meetings. The defense has been just as strong, holding Franciscan to 75 points or fewer in each of those games, and they look to continue that strong defensive play.
The last meeting between the two teams came on December 30th, 2023, in a game the Cardinals would win 94-75. Wheeling was led by former Cardinal Marcus Johnson and Sean Ealy, who each contributed 17 points in the effort. Wheeling had four total players in double figures, with Tee Harris jr. (15) and Caleb Murray (12) each hitting double digits. Johnson and Trevor Beresford led the defensive effort with seven rebounds and Ealy led the passing game with five assists.
The Details
Tip-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for 3 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.
