Greensburg, Pa.—The Wheeling Jesuit men’s basketball team overcame an 11-point halftime deficit en route to an 80-74 league victory on the road against Seton Hill University. The Cardinals (4-5, 2-4 WVIAC) surged in the final five minutes of the contest to snap the Griffins (6-4, 3-3 WVIAC) three game winning streak.
The Cardinals were led by the sharp shooting of Joe Prati. The senior from Zanesville, Ohio poured in 21 points while shooting 5-for-6 from the field (83 percent) which included a perfect 5-for-5 showing from beyond the 3-point arc. Prati added a 6-for-6 effort from the foul line and grabbed eight rebounds. Justin Fritts and Ben Siefert followed with 16 and 15, respectively, while Recardo Gaddy rounded out the Cardilals’ double-digit scorers with 13 points. Fritts and Gaddy also secured eight rebounds apiece. Andre Harris turned in a balanced stat sheet in his season debut, collecting eight points and seven rebounds.
Prati opened the game with a trifecta, however, the Griffins quickly retaliated and flew to an eight point, 13-5, advantage in the first five minutes of Saturday’s contest. Seton Hill led the rest of the way in the initial half, extending the lead to 11 points, 46-35, by halftime.
In the second half, Jesuit began chipping away at the Griffin lead immediately. Siefert started the second frame with a layup and Fritts knocked down a pair of shots from the charity stripe. Jesuit kept the game close, cutting the deficit to one point on two occasions, but the Griffins continued to control the scoreboard.
With 5:20 remaining in the game, Gaddy drained two free throws, and on the ensuing possession, Fritts recorded two points in the paint to give the Cardinals their first lead, 71-69, since the opening tap. Jesuit never relinquished the lead as Siefert connected with the bottom of the net on back-to-back trips, and Prati added a pair of shots from the charity stripe for a five point advantage, 77-72, with 43 seconds remaining. Harris (1-for-2) and Prati (2-for-2) rounded out the scoring from the foul line.
Malachi Leonard led the Griffins with 23 points and nine rebounds, while Oliver McGlade and Max Kenyi followed with 12 and 11.
Wheeling Jesuit shot 15-for-28 (54 percent) from the field in the final 20 minutes which included a 3-for-7 (43 percent) effort from downtown. For the game, WJU was 28-for-55 (51 percent) from the floor, 8-for-16 (50 percent) from beyond the 3-point arc and 16-for-22 (73 percent) from the foul line. Jesuit won the battle of the boards, outrebounding the Griffins 38-31.
The Cardinals will be back in action at the Alma Grace McDonough Center on Tuesday, January 8 against Washington Adventist University.
