Institute, W.Va. – The Charleston Golden Eagles suffered a loss to cross-town rival West Virginia State Yellow Jackets. The Yellow Jackets hit a buzzer beater three-pointer to defeat Charleston 67-65.
 
The Basics:
Location: Walker Convocation Center
Score: UC 65, WVSU 67
Records: UC 11-6 (8-3 MEC) WV State 9-8 (6-5 MEC)
 
How it Happened:
The always anticipated battle between cross-town rivals West Virginia State and the University of Charleston was nothing short of exciting in Saturday's contest in Institute. After nearly two and a half minutes of play, Charleston finally broke open the scoring in the game, Dwaine Jones picking up the first two points of the contest on familiar turf. The Golden Eagles held an eight-point lead at one point in the half, but the Yellow Jackets fought their way back and eventually took the lead and headed to the locker room with a three-point lead over Charleston.
 
In the half, both teams struggled to make their shots, West Virginia State shooting 35% and Charleston slightly worse at 31%. Despite the struggle from both sides to score, the Yellow Jackets were handed double the amount of free chances. West Virginia state converted 17-22 free throws and Charleston 8-11.
 
The shooting struggles for Charleston continued in the second half, shooting just 29%, but the Golden Eagles defense kept them in the game. Charleston held the lead for majority of the half, but the margin was well within reach for West Virginia State. The Yellow Jackets did take the lead 64-63 with 1:40 left on the clock. As the clock wound down, Charleston's Ja'Corey Lipkins tipped in a two-pointer to give Charleston a one-point advantage, ahead 65-64 with 1:07 left to play. The Yellow Jackets got the ball back but quickly turned it over forcing State to foul Charleston eventually sending them to the line. Dwaine Jones stepped up to the charity stripe for the one and one opportunity, but as State hoped for, Jones missed and the Yellow Jackets found a much needed board. Just as West Virginia State thought they would take the lead with a layup, Charleston's CJ Meredith blocked the shot, eventually finding the hands of another Golden Eagle player. With just 23 seconds left on the clock, the trailing Yellow Jackets were forced to foul, once again sending Dwaine Jones to the line for another one and one opportunity. The shot hit the rim and once again landed in the hands of a Yellow Jacket as their final timeout was called. With 17 seconds left, West Virginia State ran their final play, a jump shot that hit the rim, but with time still on the clock a Charleston player swatted the ball out towards the arc. Unfortunately for Charleston, the ball found the hands of a Yellow Jacket who three up a three-point shot and as the buzzer sounded the crowd grew wild as West Virginia State would win the contest 67-65.
 
Up Next:
The Golden Eagles will have their third road contest in a row, this one in Wheeling, West Virginia. Charleston will tipoff with the Cardinals at 7:30PM on Wednesday, January 29^th.