Basketball ‘Cats tumble on the road to Yellow Jackets, 84-61

INSTITUTE, W.Va. – The West Virginia Wesleyan men’s basketball team fell on the road to West Virginia State 84-61 on Saturday evening. The Yellow Jackets shot 56% from the field and 48% from three in the win. The Bobcats outrebounded WVSU 34-33.

WV State’s Miguel Martinez hit a three just seconds into the game to start the scoring off. Darius Green was the first Bobcat to score on a driving layup not too long after. Ike Dove made a presence down low early by making a hook shot on his first shot attempt. The two teams traded buckets for five straight possessions with the Yellow Jackets leading 17-14 at the under-10 media timeout.

The Bobcats were able to get their points down low but three consecutive makes from behind the arc for WVSU pushed the lead to eight. Green came out of the media timeout and finished through contact at the basket for a chance at a three-point play but couldn’t convert the free throw. The Yellow Jackets hot shooting continued, hitting another three and knocking down a turnaround jumper as the shot clock expired to make it 38-25 with a little over two minutes left in the half. Anthony Craven Jr.’s corner jumper cut the deficit to 11 at the break.

Wesleyan made it 42-32 in the opening minutes of the second half until WV State caught fire from three, going on a 12-3 run to push their lead to 19 and make bead coach Derek Sloan call a timeout to regroup his players. The Bobcats were converting on the offensive end but so were the Yellow Jackets, opening up the first 10 minutes of the half shooting 11-13 from the field, holding a 66-46 lead at the under-10 media timeout.

The Bobcats had a few opportunities to trim the WVSU lead below 15 after they made consecutive stops on the defensive end. Wesleyan missed their chances, allowing the Yellow Jackets to get back up 19 with a pair of three-pointers. WV State would pull away to put the game out of reach.

Miguel Martinez led all scorers with 21 points for WVSU. Three Yellow Jackets scored 10 points apiece, including Malik Whitaker’s double-double with 10 rebounds. Anthony Pittman dished out five assists and blocked three shots to add to his stat line.

Craven Jr. finished with 20 points and shot 8-10 from the field to lead the Bobcats. Craven Jr. also led the Bobcats in rebounding with eight. Green closed the night with 16 points, seven rebounds and two steals.

Wesleyan will finish their two-game road skid at Concord on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m.

Boxscore

Featured

SHOPS & SERVICES

Buckhannon City Council approves $6.5 million-dollar budget prioritizing public safety, infrastructure

BUCKHANNON – City council passed the largest budget in Buckhannon’s history Tuesday, with the two largest allocations once again earmarked for public safety operations and infrastructure maintenance, respectively. At its March 14 meeting – rescheduled from March 16 due to […]

Become a premium member to unlock immediate access to this story and thousands more. Plus you’ll wake up every morning to our email edition. Your subscription supports local news by local writers. Signing up is easy — just tap the button below!

Police arrest man they say was the driver in 2022 pursuit that ended in a wreck with two people ejected

BUCKHANNON – A Rock Cave man was arrested for allegedly fleeing from police officers in a vehicle, injuring himself and a passenger. Elijah Carpenter, 27, of Rock Cave was arrested Thursday for fleeing from an officer and fleeing or attempting […]

Become a premium member to unlock immediate access to this story and thousands more. Plus you’ll wake up every morning to our email edition. Your subscription supports local news by local writers. Signing up is easy — just tap the button below!

SHOPS & SERVICES

Lacrosse Bucs fall late to John Marshall, 12-11

TENNERTON – The Buckhannon-Upshur boy’s lacrosse team let one get away from against the John Marshall Monarchs Saturday night at Freal “Red” Crites Memorial Stadium. The Bucs led 9-7 going into the final quarter but couldn’t maintain the lead dropping […]

Become a premium member to unlock immediate access to this story and thousands more. Plus you’ll wake up every morning to our email edition. Your subscription supports local news by local writers. Signing up is easy — just tap the button below!

Big 10 Boy’s All-Conference Basketball Team announced

TENNERTON – The Big 10 Boy’s All-Conference Basketball Team was announced on Monday as voted on by the league coaches. Fairmont Senior’s Zycheus Dobbs was named the Conference Player of the Year. Dobbs led the

Upshur County Sports Calendar

MONDAY (March 20) Baseball Softball Tennis TUESDAY (March 21) Baseball Softball Tennis WEDNESDAY (March 22) Lacrosse Tennis THURSDAY (March 23) Baseball Lacrosse Softball Tennis FRIDAY (March 24) Baseball Lacrosse Tennis Track and Field SATURDAY (March

WVWC Track - Wesleyan Sports

Wesleyan track and field teams find success at WVU meet

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia Wesleyan men’s and women’s track & field teams competed at West Virginia University this weekend at the Stan Romanoski Open. The Bobcats had five individual event winners and one

SHOPS & SERVICES

Fairmont State University selects 2023 Presidential Scholarship winners

Three incoming Fairmont State University freshmen have been selected as the recipients of Fairmont State’s premier academic scholarship, the Charles J. McClain Presidential Scholarship. Sophie Stuart from Jefferson High School (Charles town, W.VA), Hailey Jordan

WVDEP hosting students on World Water Day

CHARLESTON, WV – In an effort to enrich students’ understanding of the importance of clean water, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) is hosting a water education event for area grade schools on