INSTITUTE, W. Va. – The West Virginia State University men's basketball team played host to Wheeling on Wednesday night and came away with a victory, 97-92. The Yellow Jackets staved off a late surge by the Cardinals to get an important Mountain East Conference (MEC) win against a top opponent.

West Virginia State (6-2, 3-2 MEC) leap frogs Wheeling (6-3, 3-2 MEC) in the league standings with the win. The Yellow Jackets are currently in fourth place due to a superior overall record.

Senior Frank Agyemang led the Yellow Jackets in scoring with 20 points. He also collected five rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Freshman Treohn Watkins followed closely behind with 19 points, while fellow freshman Anthony Pittman put up 18 points in the contest.

Wheeling gained an early advantage in the first half by grabbing an 11-point lead, 21-10, before the Yellow Jackets mounted their comeback. West Virginia State began scoring in bunches and claimed the lead at the 8:12 mark thanks to a three-point field goal by Frank Agyemang, 26-25. The rest of the half was a back and forth battle which ended with the score knotted up at 43 apiece.

West Virginia State came out of the break on a roll. The Yellow Jackets went on an 11-3 run in the first two minutes of the second half before Wheeling called a timeout. After the hot start, things slowed down and the Cardinals crawled their way back into the game. With 13:31 left in the game, Wheeling was back within one point of West Virginia State, 63-62.

The Yellow Jackets then responded with a 10-2 run to create some separation open at the midway point of the half. The run was led by Anthony Pittman who scored seven of the 10 points and made three steals in Wheeling's backcourt.

Wheeling made a late game push with just minutes left and even brought the WVSU lead to only one-point multiple times, but made free-throws from freshman Treohn Watkins and senior Michal Seals ensured that the Yellow Jackets got the win.

The WVSU bench played a big role in the victory. They contributed 24 points, compared to only 15 points by Wheeling's bench.

West Virginia State will be back in action on Saturday, Dec. 14 for an away contest versus West Liberty (6-2, 3-1 MEC). Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.