For The Intelligencer
Wheeling Jesuit University’s men’s basketball team, leading 44-39 with little more than 7 minutes to play, fell victim to a stunning 16-0 Seton Hill run that paved the way for a disappointing 60-53 defeat at the hands of the Griffins in Monday night’s West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference clash played at the Alma Grace McDonough Center.
The Cardinals, who had taken the five-point lead on Rusty Wooten’s nice move in the post, didn’t get back on the scoreboard again until Lance Randall’s follow shot dropped into the net with 2:20 remaining. By that time, Seton Hill held a 55-46 lead and had the victory securely in hand.
Jordan Thomas triggered the rally for the Griffins with his deep 3-pointer from the left baseline that splashed cleanly through the cords.
Emmanuel Jackson, Seton Hill’s smooth 6-foot-2 guard out of Norfolk, Va., was fouled when he leaped in to grab a rebound on the defensive end. The 88-percent free-throw shooter on the season drained both ends of the 1-and-1 for a 44-all deadlock at the 6:15 mark. Then it was Cody Boone’s turn to inflict some damage on the Cardinals. Boone, a 6-9 sophomore who came off the Seton Hill bench to score 15 points, showed the mobility of a guard in twice cutting to the basket for layups that put the Griffins ahead 48-44, and they never looked back the rest of the way.
The victory improved Seton Hill’s overall record to 7-10 after a 1-9 start to the season. Coach Tony Morocco’s club is currently riding a five-game winning streak which included a prized three-point victory against WVIAC pacesetter Alderson-Broaddus on Saturday night. The Cardinals, meanwhile, fell to 9-8 overall and 4-6 against conference opponents.
Wheeling Jesuit coach Danny Sancomb had seen this kind of finish to a game on a few other occasions this season and he gets a little more disgusted every time it happens.
‘‘We just don’t have the ability to make plays at the end and finish off games,’’ Sancomb said with a deep frown on his face. ‘‘It’s not from a lack of effort. They’re playing hard but we have trouble scoring when we need to make some shots.’’
The opportunities were there, but, as Sancomb noted, the Cardinals missed seven shots in the paint during the second half.
Wheeling’s effective trapping defense certainly gave it a chance, especially in the first half when the Cardinals forced Seton Hill into 14 of its 22 turnovers. While Sancomb’s team left the court in front 26-22, the lead could have been much higher had it been able to convert some open shots.
After fallilng behind 18-10 in the first 10 minutes, the Cardinals put on an impressive 16-4 run of their own.
Kyle Higgins entered the game for the first time and quickly drained a triple to trim the deficit to 18-13, followed by Jhared Simpson’s jumper that also dropped through the cords and cut the deficit to three points.
The Griffins extended the lead to 22-15 on a Boone transition basket and a tip by 6-6 senior Mateja Dicic. Wheeling retaliated by scoring the last 11 points of the half.
The Cardinals caught up at 22 apiece on a steal and drive to the basket for a lay-in by Duane Compo with 1:50 on the clock. Maqsood Harrington’s mid-range jumper and a turnaround basket from Greg Andrews provided the Cardinals with their four-point advantage at the break.
Seton Hill gained a 31-31 ie on Igor Dutina’s strong move in the post. Wheeling’s Randall quickly countered with a trifecta from the just behind the arc at the top of the key.
The Cardinals eventually built their lead back to 44-39 before the Griffins turned out the lights with their 16-point spurt.
Four players scored in double figures for the winners. Boone’s 15 led the way, followed by Jackson’s 12 points, 11 from Jordan and 10 by Dicic.
The only Wheeling Jesuit player with more than nine points was Randall, who had 12 tallies.
Seton Hill, with a front line that included three players 6-6 or better, won the battle underneath the glass, 35-29, as Dicic collected eight rebounds. Simpson collared six missed shots for the Cardinals.
West Liberty 109,
Ohio Valley 96
VIENNA — Chris Banal led six players in double figures as West Liberty pulled away from Ohio Valley.
Ben Howlett and Dan Binggeli each had 17 points for the No. 10 Hilltoppers, while Corey Pelle had 18 points, Scott Mirich added 15 and Michael Mathey totaled 12.
West Liberty committed just nine turnovers.
The Hilltoppers shot 50 percent from the field for the game, including 53 percent in the second half. Banal was near perfect, going 11 of 15 from the field and 3 of 4 from the line. Howlett added six steals to go with his points and Binggeli led the team with seven rebounds.
Omar Campbell paced five double-figure scorers for the Fighting Scots with 25 points. Stephen Camberis added 20 points, Chris Leborious and Micah Mills added 14 points while Austin Jones added 11.
West Liberty led by only six at the half, but forced 23 turnovers, including 12 by way of steals.
Women
West Liberty 78
Ohio Valley 56
VIENNA — West Liberty improved to 13-4 overall as Tori Hansen and Julie Cessna led a balanced scoring attack with 14 points apiece in a victory against Ohio Valley.
Cassie Smith had 12 points for the Hilltoppers, while Laura Malernee had 13 and Renee Farina dropped in 10. Lisa Perry dished out 11 assists to gow with her six points.
Perry stands with 816 career assists, good for fourth on the Hilltoppers’ all-time list.
Seton Hill 83
Wheeling Jesuit 61
At Wheeling, Seton Hill shot 56 percent from the field in a victory against Wheeling Jesuit.
Lindsay Stuckey led the Cardinals with 20 points. The next highest scorers were Shayla Holenka and Bridget O’Brien, who each tallied seven.
Katie Lintner led all scorers with 31 points for the Griffins, going 13 of 20 from the field and 5 of 5 at the free-throw line. Autumn Himes added 19 points for Seton Hill, which jumped out to a 41-28 lead at the break.
The Griffins’ Erika Haitz added 13 points.