Wise, Virginia-It was a tense, back and forth affair with the outcome in doubt until the very end, but The University of Virginia's College at Wise men's basketball team came up just short against the visiting Pikeville Bears, 74-72 in Mid-South action Saturday. The Cavaliers had a chance to win but Travis Berry's hail mary shot from inside half court came up just short. The Cavs jumped out to an early nine point lead in the first half, but the defending national champions battled back and took the lead early in the second period. After leading the entire first half, the home squad was unable to take any substantial lead after the break and could not cap off the late rally with a win. The Cavs struggled from the field in the contest, only hitting 37% of their field goal attempts but connected on six three point baskets to stay in the game. The visitors struggled from the field in the first half, but caught fire in the second to finish at 41% from the field. Cavalier forward Josh Jordan was the game's leading scorer, finishing with 24 points.
Jordan, the senior forward, posted another double double in today's game, pouring in a game-high 24 points (8-14 from the field, 8-12 on free throws) and leading the contest in rebounds as well with 13. Four Cavs finished in double digits scoring-wise including Jordan, with point guard Darius Smith scoring 17 and leading UVa-Wise in assists with six, senior Travis Berry scoring 13 points, and forward Norris Gaskins adding 11. Gaskins had an outstanding all around effort, grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five assists to go with his 11 points.
Leading the way for the visiting Bears was guard Chris McHenry, who had 23 points and grabbed four rebounds. Three Pikeville players finished in double digits with McHenry, as forward Andrew Young added 20 points and forward Trevor Setty finished with 11. Forward Cordaro Ellis led Pikeville in rebounds with 11, and point guard Josh Whitaker led the team in assists with six.
With the loss, the Cavaliers drop to 3-5 in the Mid-South and 5-9 overall. UVa-Wise will be in action again Thursday night, as they play host to Lindsay Wilson College. The game begins at 8:00 PM and can be heard on 92.1 WDIC FM. All results can be found http://www.uvawisecavs.com
