Wesleyan men come up short against No. 16 Falcons, 93-78

BUCKHANNON, W.Va.– West Virginia Wesleyan (2-25, 1-20) men’s basketball dropped a home contest inside Rockefeller Center to the nationally-ranked Fairmont State Fighting Falcons (21-5, 16-5) on Wednesday. The 16th ranked Fighting Falcons won 93-78.
 
Leaders for WVWC
Tommie Pope led the Bobcats with 18 points on 8-16 from the floor. Pope hauled in nine rebounds to go with eight assists on the contest. Braeden McGrew scored 16 points and played all 40 minutes. Ike Dove was efficient in the post scoring 13 points on 54% shooting (6-for-11).
 
Leaders for Fairmont State
Zyon Dobbs led all scorers with 21 points and dished out seven assists. The Fighting Falcons shot 40% from behind the arc on the evening, making 10 total triples. Isaiah Sanders poured in 19 points on 7-13 from the floor. Parris Briggs, George Mangas, and Cole VonHandorf all scored above 10 points. In their victory, Fairmont State shot the ball at a 56.5% clip (35-62).
 
Inside the First Half
Anthony Craven Jr. banked in a three at the 18:01 mark to take a 7-4 lead. That lead extended to five a few minutes later when Ike Dove finished through contact down on the block and drew the foul. Dove sank the ensuing free throw to give WVWC a 15-10 lead. After the first media timeout, McGrew worked with Pope to get clear of the Fighting Falcon defender and finish an easy bucket and make it a 19-14 game. Fairmont tied the game at 21 with 12:22 to play and would not relinquish the lead. Pope scored six of the team’s final nine points as the Bobcats went into the locker room down 47-38.
 
Inside the Second Half
The ‘Cats trimmed the deficit to six with 17:02 to play after McGrew hit a jumper in the paint to make it a 52-46 game. The Falcons responded on the other end before Brian Bernard went up and under to keep it within six. The Fighting Falcons put the game out of reach, going on an 18-5 run over the next six minutes to make it a 19 point lead. McGrew had a pair of four-point plays in the contest, with the latter coming with 7:01 to play. McGrew was falling away on the right baseline when the Fairmont defender took him down. McGrew swished the triple and connected on the free throw to make it a 76-61 ballgame. The Fighting Falcons would control the contest the remainder of the way on the way to a 15 point victory.
 
Up Next
The Bobcats will play host to the Senators from Davis & Elkins on Saturday for senior day. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m.