BUCKHANNON, W.Va. – Tyler Slone buried a season-high 28 points on Saturday for the West Virginia Wesleyan (2-22, 1-17) men’s basketball team. The Bobcats fell to West Virginia State (18-6, 13-4) 93-86 inside Rockefeller Center.
Leaders for WVWC
The Bobcats shot 50.0% from behind the arc (8-for-16), with Slone contributing four of his own. Slone added six rebounds to go with his season high. Braeden McGrew finished the contest with his second double-double of the season. McGrew scored 15 points and dished out 11 assists while playing all 40 minutes of the competition. Anthony Craven Jr., Ike Dove, and Daunte Gardner finished with 13 points.
Leaders for WVSU
Jeremiah Moore scored a game-high 39 points for the Yellow Jackets on 15-18 shooting from the field. Moore was 9-10 from the charity stripe on the contest. Glen Abram connected on five three-pointers (5-for-12) to bring his total to 19 on the afternoon. Anthony Pittman hauled in nine rebounds to go with 12 points.
Inside the First Half
McGrew scored the first six points for the ‘Cats connecting on three-pointers on back-to-back possessions. With 13:19 to play in the opening half, the Yellow Jackets took a 15-9 lead. Craven Jr. responded with a jumper in the key to trim it to four. WVSU took their largest lead of the half with 6:38 remaining. WVWC went on a 6-0 run over the next 2:58 to make it a 32-30 ballgame. The Yellow Jackets closed the half on a 9-4 run, making it a 41-34 game heading into the intermission.
Inside the Second Half
The Yellow Jackets took a 49-38 lead in the first two minutes of the half. McGrew and Gardner connected on jumpers to stop the WVSU and bring the ‘Cats within seven. WVSU took their largest lead of the half with 13:21 to play after Moore hit a pair of free throws to make it a 61-49 lead.
The Orange & Black showed perseverance again, going on a run of their own. Slone finished a layup off a McGrew dime, and Gardner hit a contested jumper the following possession to make it a 61-53 game. Dove hit a beautiful hook shot off a McGrew entry pass, and Slone capped off a 9-2 run with a deep triple to make it a 63-58 game with 11:06 to play. Slone hit another trifecta with 8:17 left, this time from Craven Jr.
Slone scored 14 of the ‘Cats 16 points over a three-minute stretch, but the Bobcats still found themselves down 78-71. WVWC went on a 6-0 run with 58 seconds remaining to make it an 88-83. However, they could not get any closer resulting in a 93-86 loss.
Up Next
The Bobcats remain at home on Wednesday as they take on the Concord University Mountain Lions at 7:30 p.m.
