Athens, W. Va. - The final two weeks of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) season tipped off Wednesday with the Wheeling University Men's Basketball team (16-8, 11-6) traveling to Athens, West Virginia. A win was all the Cardinals needed to clinch a first round bye in the MEC Men's Basketball Tournament for the first time since the 2019-2020 season, and they did just that taking down Concord 77-71. After both teams eclipsed the century mark in their match-up back in January, Wednesday's game was a more defensive battle, with neither team getting to 80 points on the night.
The Cardinals would hit the run ground running, as Caleb Murray took the ball to the rim for a layup on the first possession of the night. Concord answered with a three, but it was a temporary stop in what was an 8-3 run to start the game for Wheeling. Murray started and ended the run with a layup, and hit his third jumper of the day to keep Wheeling ahead 10-5 at the 15-minute media timeout. Tee Harris Jr. Came out of the break with a layup, and both defenses would stiffen for the next five minutes. The two teams would combine to score just nine points over the five-minute stretch, with the Mountain Lions accounting for six of those nine points. A Curtis Harrison IV free throw would round out the Cardinal scoring during the stretch, and a pair of Concord free throws by Micah Young made it a 13-12 game with 10 minutes to go in the first half.
Trevor Beresford would hit a free throw on the other side of the 10-minute media timeout, but Concord would tie the game with 9:12 to go. The Cardinals would turn to their bench for a spark and got it from Jerry Saunders Jr., who single-handedly led a 5-0 Cardinal swing on back-to-back possessions that had the Cardinals ahead once again 19-14. After Concord broke the run, Saunders would continue his string of success with a pair of free throws, and Jalen Wenger hit a three-pointer to keep Wheeling out in front 24-19 with 6:43 to go before the half. Concord battled back to within two points at the five-minute media timeout, and tied things up with a Young layup on the other side. It was the second time that the Mountain Lions had tied the game, but Wheeling was able to keep the lead. Murray would hit a layup with 3:14 to go and sent Wheeling on a 7-4 run, capped by a Harris Dunk. Concord would score the final four points of the half, but Wheeling was able to hold off the run and led 35-32 heading to halftime.
Harris would finish the first half with eight points, and it was the junior that helped the Cardinals seal the deal in the second half. After the teams traded the first four points of the half, Harris would slam down his second dunk of the day to make it a 39-34 game. It was the first of six straight points for Harris, and he helped the Cardinals extend their lead to 43-35 with 17:26 to play. As they had throughout the night, Concord battled back and made it a 45-44 game on the other side of the media timeout. Just like in the first half, Concord got close but never took the lead away from the Cardinals as they went back and forth. Harris's 16th point of the night would make it a 54-47 game, and Murray hit a jumper just before the 10-minute mark and the Cardinals would hold a 56-50 lead with 10 minutes left in regulation.
Ayden Goll would score the next five Cardinal points, with a three giving the Cardinals a 61-53 advantage. As the half went on, Concord continued to battle back, making it a 68-62 game, before Harris hit a three to get Wheeling back in front by nine heading to the final media timeout. The Mountain Lions would not go down without a fight, hitting a 7-0 run that got them back to within 71-69 with 2:19 to go in regulation. The Cardinal defense got a big stop on the next Concord possession, and Harrison hit a layup that broke the run. Harris would finish his night with a jumper that got him over the 20-point mark for the first time this season, and would end up sealing the win. Saunders would hit the final two free throws of the night and brought the game to its final score of 77-71. As a team, the Cardinals shot 47% (31-66) from the floor, with a 54.5% (18-33) in the second half sealing the win.
Leading the way for the Cardinals was Tee Harris Jr., who set a season-high with 21 points in the winning effort. Harris would be the Cardinal's most efficient shooter, going 10-15 (66.7%) from the floor, with one of those being from beyond the three-point line. He was one of three Cardinals to finish in double digits on the day, with Ayden Goll (14) and Caleb Murray (12) each hitting double digits in the game. Goll would also lead the passing game with eight assists, while adding a team-high two steals, and Curtis Harrison IV would follow with a team-best nine rebounds in the effort.
The Wheeling University Men's Basketball team returns to action on Saturday, February 21st, when they host Glenville State with tip-off at 4 PM.
