— Game recaps by Taylor Kennedy
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Wednesday evening in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) could be described as a rodeo. Games coming down to the wire, one of the remaining two undefeated team receives its first loss and a player writes his name into his school’s history.
Fairmont State and Notre Dame College did not compete Wednesday evening due to the Fighting Falcons men’s basketball team pausing team activities due to COVID-19.
Concord (3-2) – 91. West Liberty (4-1) – 83
For the first time since 2017, the Concord Mountain Lions defeated the West Liberty Hilltoppers. It was also the third time Concord upset West Liberty in six seasons, and all of those wins came when the Hilltoppers were ranked in the top-five nationally. The Mountain Lions had lost its previous eight games against the Hilltoppers. It was the seventh time West Liberty scored under 85 points against MEC opponents in the Ben Howlett era.
Concord’s Malik Johnson hit a three-pointer with less than four minutes to push the Mountain Lions’ lead to 16. West Liberty quickly responded with a 14-0 run, which cut the Concord lead to two. The Mountain Lions would proceed to knock down six straight free throws to go back up to eight with less than 45 seconds left. Concord would finish the game sinking 11 of its last 14 free throws.
The Mountain Lions were led by Malik Johnson with 25 points. It was the eighth time Johnson scored 20+ points in a Concord uniform. Junior Mohamed Bundu recorded 22 points. On the opposite side, West Liberty’s Pat Robinson led all scorers with 26 points. Senior Dalton Bolon tallied 17 points as well.
West Virginia State (4-1) – 94 v. West Virginia Wesleyan (0-5) – 89
It was a back and forth first half. Both teams’ largest leads in the first 20 minutes were six points. The Bobcats finished the first half on a 7-1 run, which gave them a five point advantage heading into the break 47-42.
The second half would be no different than the first half as both continued to go back and forth. Midway through the second half, the Yellow Jackets found themselves down by seven, but they would quickly respond with their own 11-2 run. That run pushed them ahead 70-68. West Virginia State outscored Wesleyan 24-21 to finish the game.
Senior Jeremiah Moore cemented his name into Yellow Jacket history passing the 1,000-point mark. Moore finished the game with 19 points. Alongside Moore, four other Yellow Jackets scored double-figures, including a team-high 21 points from Glen Abram. The Bobcats were led by Jaylin Reed and Daylin Lee who both combined for 53 of the team’s 89 points.
Glenville State (5-0) – 92, Wheeling (0-4) – 78
The Glenville State Pioneers remain undefeated. The Pioneers are now the only undefeated team left in the MEC. Glenville State led by eight going into the break thanks to its starting five combining for 31 points, including 10 points Hegel Augustin.
In the second half, junior John Williams came alive scoring 13 points shooting 4-7 (57%) from the field. Nick Edwards also tallied double-figures in the second half scoring 10 points. The Pioneers season leading scorer Hegel Augustin was held to two points in the second half.
Glenville State outrebounded Wheeling 47-36. Of those 47 rebounds, 24 points came from second chance points, which was eight points better than Wheeling. The Pioneers assisted on 17 of the team’s 31 made field goals. GSC had three players eclipse double-figures, including a 22-point performance from Wiliams. The Cardinals were led by Jarett Haines who scored a season-high 24 points. That was his fifth 20+-point performance at Wheeling University.
Alderson Broaddus (2-3) – 90, Frostburg State (1-3) – 76
In the first half, it was all Alderson Broaddus. The Battlers went into the half leading by nine 45-36. Frostburg State would finish the last minute and a half on a 5-0 run. That run would make it a single-digit game since the Battlers led by double-figures the majority of the first half.
The Bobcats would cut the Battlers lead to as small as six with under 13 minutes left. AB would not let Frostburg State get any closer from that point on. The Battlers outrebounded the Bobcats 24-20 in the second half, including six offensive rebounds that were converted into six second chance points.
Four Battlers scored double-figures, including a team-high 16 points from former Philip Barbour prospect David Shrier. After last night’s performance, it was the second time Shriver scored 15+ points. On the flip side, Frostburg State was led by the MEC’s leading scorer Agyei Edwards scoring 27 points Wednesday evening.
Charleston (3-2) – 83 v. Davis & Elkins (2-3) – 74
After dropping its first two games of the season, the Charleston Golden Eagles recorded their third straight win. It is the Golden Eagles 11th straight victory over Davis & Elkins dating back to the 2009 season.
Charleston led by 11 at the half, and that lead would reach as high as 22 points late in the second half. D&E got to within five with less than a minute left, but UC’s late free throws helped push them ahead for the victory.
Charleston’s Eddie Colbert scored a team-high and season-high 20 points. Alongside Colbert, four other Golden Eagles scored in double-figures. Davis & Elkins freshman guard Sam Rolle IV led all scorers with 24 points shooting 11-22 (50%) from the field. Breland Walton also tallied in 21 points.
Wednesday’s Women’s MEC scores:
WV State 103, WV Wesleyan 68
Alderson Broaddus 93, Frostburg State 70
Concord 68, West Liberty 56
Notre Dame College 74, Fairmont State 63
Glenville State 123, Wheeling 74
Charleston 84, Davis & Elkins 55
Saturday’s Men’s Schedule
Notre Dame College at Frostburg State
Glenville State at West Liberty
Davis & Elkins at West Virginia State
West Virginia Wesleyan at Charleston
Concord at Wheeling
(All games will begin at 4:30pm)