Box Score
Wheeling, W.Va. – The Notre Dame Falcons lost on the road, to the Wheeling Jesuit Cardinals, 84-69, on Thursday night.
The Falcons (16-11, 10-11 MEC) have now lost two games in a row and fall below the.500-mark in their conference record, for the first time since Nov. 19. The Cardinals (21-6, 15-6 MEC) have won two straight games and are 6-4 in their previous 10 games.
Wheeling Jesuit hit their first five shots and took a quick 10-4 advantage with 17:40 remaining in the first half. The Cardinals first miss came at the 16:24-mark, when Jarin Hilson missed a three-point shot.
Kyauta Taylor made a jumper and a three-pointer before
Ja'Sean Lewis dunked the ball, to tie the game at 11, with 15:01 remaining in the first half. Less than 10 seconds later,
Drew Scarberry stole the ball and hit a three to give Notre Dame their first lead, 14-11.
With 9:26 to go in the half,
Kobie Johnson hit a shot to cut the deficit to two points, 22-20. Then the Cardinals took flight, going 4-for-5 from the floor and hitting two free throws during their 11-0 run.
Trailing 33-20,
Will Vorhees hit a layup to end the hotstreak for Wheeling. Notre Dame was able to cut the Cardinals' lead to eight points when Vorhees made two free throws with 1:31 to go in the first half, but that was as close as they could get before the halftime break.
At the half, Notre Dame trailed Wheeling Jesuit, 47-36. Notre Dame shot 14-for-32 (44-percent) and 4-for-13 (31-percent) from three. The Cardinals were hot in the first half, going 16-for-28 (57-percent) from the field and 5-for-10 (50-percent) from three-point range.
In the first half, Taylor had 12 points, and shot 4-for-8 (50-percent). Vorhees had nine points, for NDC. On the other side, Haywood Highsmith added 14 points and eight rebounds. Preston Boswell had 11 points.
Notre Dame went on a 16-8 run to start the second half, cutting the Wheeling Jesuit lead to three points, 55-52, after Scarberry nailed another three with 13:42 remaining in the game.
However, after the Cardinals were able to make a shot on the other end, the Falcons would not be able to get any closer.
Wheeling would increase their lead to 15 points, 71-56, with nine minutes remaining, after Highsmith hit a jumper.
For the Falcons, Vorhees had 23 points and six rebounds, as well as shooting 8-for-15 (53-percent). He had 14 points in the second half. Johnson had 13 points and Taylor had 12 points. Scarberry added 11 points. As a team, they shot 26-for-58 (45-percent) and 7-for-9 (78-percent) from the free throw line.
The Cardinals shot 26-for-60 (48-percent) from the field and 9-for-22 (41-percent) from three point range. Highsmith finished with 20 points, 15 rebounds and five assists. Hilson had 15 points and six rebounds, while his teammate, Boswell, had 18 points. Dominique Tham added 11 points.
The Falcons will come home to take on Urbana University, their final home game, on Feb. 25. Tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m.
