Box Score

WHEELING, W.Va. - After torching the nets with 52 percent shooting and seven three-pointers in the first half the University of Charleston went cold after halftime allowing Wheeling Jesuit to charge from behind and hold on for a 77-73 West Virginia Conference win, Thursday evening.

UC (11-4, 6-3) took a six point advantage headed into the locker room at halftime, but hit just 11-of-34 shots in the second half opening the door for the Cardinals (8-5, 5-3).  WJU responded to hit clutch shots in the final four minutes to slip by the Golden Eagles just enough to preserve a victory. Wheeling Jesuit shot 47 percent (15-of-32) in the second stanza with six shots from behind the arc to outscore Charleston 42-32 in the period.

In the game, UC shot 12-of-34 from three-point range as the battled a tough Cardinal zone defense all evening.

"They were just tougher than us tonight." stated head coach Mark Downey, "All the three-pointers going down in the first half definately had an effect on our mindset against the zone in the second half. We just couldn't get the big shot when we needed it and they did."

Leading scorer Paul "PJ" Reyes (Taylor, Mich.) paved the way for UC with 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Evan Faulkner (Sandyhook, Ky.) hit 5-of-11 three-pointers to finish the evening as the only other double-digit scorer at 15 points.

Steve Catich and Recardo Gaddy single-handidly carried Wheeling Jesuit with 27 & 24 points, respectively.

Charleston returns home to try to regain some ground in the WVIAC standings with an important matchup against Shepherd on Saturday, Jan. 14. UC tips off against the Rams at 4:00 pm in Eddie King Gym.