VIENNA, W.Va.—The Wheeling Jesuit men’s basketball team extended their winning streak to seven games after exploding for 111 points en route to a 111-83 victory on the road against Ohio Valley University. With the win, WJU improved to 16-8 overall and 13-7 in the WVIAC while OVU slipped to 3-24 and 2-19 in league play.
Twelve different Cardinals appeared in the score sheet’s total points column as Justin Fritts led with 27 points on a 10-for-12 shooting performance from the field which included a 3-for-4 effort from behind the 3-point arc. Andre Harris followed with 21 points while Ben and Eric Siefert chipped in 17 and 13, respectively.
Justin Andes connected with three trifectas for nine points, Kasey Tuttle tallied six points, Recardo Gaddy added five points, Tim Goff notched four and Charles Bard had three. Joe Prati, Steve Bridgeman and Darin Harris rounded out the scoring with two points each.
Ben Siefert collected a team-high nine rebounds, Eric Siefert grabbed seven and Prati secured six, however, OVU held a 47-43 advantage on the glass. As a team, Wheeling Jesuit shot 54-percent from the floor, connecting on 40-of-74 shots from the field which included a 12-for-23 showing from beyond the 3-point arc.
Ohio Valley opened the game with a 7-0 run before Ben Siefert split a pair of free throws to put Jesuit on the scoreboard. He thhe followed with the next six points for the Cardinals, but Ohio Valley kept the lead, 13-7. Andre Harris brought WJU within four points with a field goal, and added three more consecutive buckets, one from beyond the 3-point stripe, to bring the Cardinals within two points, 18-16. The Fighting Scots continued to answer with field goals, pushing the lead back to five points with a long range bomb. As WJU was still in pursuit of gaining the lead, Gaddy buried a pair of free throws and Fritts added a bucket, but Jesuit trailed by one, 23-22.
The two teams traded points until the clock showed 8:51 when Eric Siefert gave the Cardinals their first lead, 29-28, with a lay-in after a Prati steal. The game was again tied at 30 points apiece, and Eric Siefert connected from deep to lift the Cardinals to a 33-30 advantage. Jesuit followed with seven unanswered points as Andre Harris, Ben Siefert and Fritts found the bottom of the net, 40-30. The Cardinals continued to add points to the scoreboard with a 10-1 run, building a 17-point advantage, 50-33. Ohio Valley recorded the final three points of the half, and Jesuit led 50-36 at the break.
In the second half, the Cardinals quickly established a 20 point advantage and led by as many as 40 points, 103-63, behind a stellar shooting performance. Jesuit had the hot hand in the final 20 minutes, recording a sizzling 77-percent from deep on a 10-for-13 performance. The Cardinals connected on 23-of-34 shot attempts for a 68-percent effort.
David Sinickas and Ashton Brown led the Fighting Scots with 15 points while Mustafa Helal and Povilas Dambrauskas recorded double-doubles. Helal had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Dambrauskas tallied 13 points and 12 boards.
The Cardinals will be back in action on Thursday, February 21 at the Alma Grace McDonough Center for their final home game of the regular season against the University of Charleston. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
