INSTITUTE, W.Va. – The West Virginia State University men's basketball team upset nationally-ranked No. 20 West Liberty, 96-93, on Wednesday night at the Walker Convocation Center. Three of West Virginia State's usual starters were out due to illness, making the upset victory even more remarkable.

"I have some very memorable wins at West Virginia State including conference championships and NCAA tournament runs," said Head Coach Bryan Poore after the hard-fought victory. "This one ranks right up there with them all! With the guys that we had out, I am super proud of our guys' effort and their ability to stick to the game plan."  

West Virginia State reaches a 15-5 overall record, 10-5 in-conference record with the win. League-leading West Liberty drops down to 17-4 on the season, 12-3 in the Mountain East Conference with the loss.

Junior guard Glen Abram was the star of the show with a career-high 38 points. He reached 28 points by the conclusion of the first half. Senior guard Isaiah Noel got the start and recorded 22 points in an impressive performance. Fellow senior Carmearl Thomas made his presence known in the post and registered a double-double with 15 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Freshman guard Treohn Watkins drained four shots from behind the arc, while senior guard Michal Seals dished out eight assists. Abram, Noel, Watkins, and Seals played the full 40 minutes. Meanwhile, Thomas played 34 minutes.

The entire first half was a battle of wills. Both opponents played at an extremely fast pace and matched basket for basket. To quantify the matter, the largest lead that either team was able to gain was six points in the opening half. With the game clock winding down to zero seconds, Glen Abram made a three-point shot to put the Yellow Jackets up by five points, 53-48, at the break.

The second half was similar to the first half in that neither team slowed at any point or gave the other much slack. Unlike the first half, there was a clear turning point when West Virginia State took control of the game.

At approximately the 10-minute mark, Carmearl Thomas made a layup under the basket and then tipped in a missed shot on the next offensive possession to tie the score at 71-all. This was the start of a 19-5 run in favor of the Yellow Jackets. With around five minutes left to play, WVSU was up by 10 points, 86-76.

West Virginia State held onto its 10-point advantage for the next two minutes. Around the three-minute mark, WVSU led by a score of 92-82.

West Liberty responded with an 11-3 run that brought the Hilltoppers back within two points of the Yellow Jackets, 95-93. There was one minute showing on the scoreboard when the run came to an end.

The final minute was a bizarre series of events. There were multiple turnovers followed by deadball fouls on both ends. Then, after a couple of missed free throws, West Liberty grabbed the rebound and gained the opportunity to tie the game with a two-pointer or win the game with three-pointer.

Isaiah Noel stepped up in the game's most crucial moment and came up with a steal that forced the Hilltoppers to foul with 5 seconds to go. Noel made his first free throw and the ensuing defensive rebound off his second attempt did not allow West Liberty enough time to get in range for a game-tying shot.

West Liberty committed a ridiculous 29 personal fouls in total. West Virginia State was much more disciplined with merely 13 personal fouls committed. WVSU also shot better from the field (57 percent) and three-point range (44 percent). Comparatively, WLU shot 43 percent from the field and 35 percent from three-point range.

The Yellow Jackets will head to the northern panhandle of West Virginia to play Wheeling next on Saturday, Feb. 8. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.