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WBB 23 Bench Celebrating
Photo: Todd Griffith
83
Winner West Virginia St. WVSt 17-4,12-4 MEC
78
Wheeling WHL 12-11,10-6 MEC
Winner
West Virginia St. WVSt
17-4,12-4 MEC
83
Final
78
Wheeling WHL
12-11,10-6 MEC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 OT 1 F
West Virginia St. WVSt 20 16 20 13 14 83
Wheeling WHL 23 17 19 10 9 78

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Bryan Shepherd, Assistant Sports Information Director

No. 24 Women's Basketball rallies to knock off Cardinals in overtime

WHEELING, W.Va. – No. 24 West Virginia State's women's basketball team escaped Wheeling with a five-point overtime win, 83-78. WVSU (17-4, 12-4 MEC) was out-rebounded for just the sixth time this season, but stout defense resulted in Wheeling (12-11, 10-6 MEC) shooting under 40 percent for the game. By contrast, the Cardinals shot over 50 percent to take down the Yellow Jackets in Institute on Dec. 7, 2022.

Anysa Jordan hit several clutch shots in the waning moments of regulation and overtime and scored 18 points to help the Yellow Jacket cause, along with eight rebounds. Destiny Fields also scored 18 points and collected seven defensive rebounds. Emyah Fortenberry had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Shelby Harmeyer also scored 12 points and had 6 defensive boards. 

Wheeling's Jacqui Hinesman led all scorers with 20 points and eight rebounds.

Both teams struggled in the opening two minutes of the game. Anysa Jordan canned the first field goal of the game for WVSU at the 8:02 mark just after Wheeling hit a layup. Wheeling tied it at 6-all then took the lead followed by a Latifat Olitunji jumper to tie it back up at 8-all. Wheeling took the lead off of a 6-0 run, but State charged right back on a 7-0 run to re-take the lead. Wheeling took the lead back, but never got higher than three and Wheeling took a 23-20 lead and the end of the first.

Wheeling continued to build on their lead, eventually going on a 12-4 run to take a nine-point lead, 31-22. State countered with an 11-3 run over the next six minutes with Fields scoring five, Shelby Harmeyer scoring three, Anysa Jordan scoring two, and Emyah Forternberry adding a foul shot. Destiny Fields drove the lane with under a minute to go, was fouled, and threw the rock through the hoop and successfully converted the and-one opportunity to close out the second quarter scoring. Wheeling slightly extended their lead 40-36 heading into the locker room.

State got hot from long range in the third quarter, going three-for-three at one point and clawed back to shave the Cardinal lead to 51-50, courtesy of ZZ Russell and Harmeyer both nailing a trey bookending a layup by Alana Kramer. Both teams put together small runs after the second-half floater media timeout, first Wheeling scored five straight followed by a 6-0 run with Kramer, Fields, and Fortenberry each contributing a field goal and tying the game at 56-all. Wheeling hit and converted an and-one opportunity to conclude the third quarter with Wheeling holding a slim 59-56 lead.

Anysa Jordan immediately hit a turn-around jumper to shave the Yellow Jacket deficit to a point. With 3:09 to play, Jordan again hit a clutch shot to tie the game at 66-all. Wheeling went up by two, followed by a Fortenberry foul shot to bring the Jackets within one, once again. Over the next 90 seconds, Wheeling went 0-3 from the field and WVSU went 1-4 from the charity stripe. Wheeling then hit a free throw with under a minute to go to take a two point lead, 69-67. Anysa Jordan then nailed a short-range jumper to tie it up at 69-69. WHeeling threw the ball out of bounds on their final possession of regulation, giving State 5.4 seconds to try and steal the game. Fortenberry's jumper from just inside the arc was short, however, and the two teams headed to overtime, the second extra period for the Yellow Jackets this season and the first overtime regular season game for Wheeling since 2018.

Neither team scored for the first minute-and-a-half of the extra period. Wheeling hit the first bucket, to which State answered, tying the game back up a 71-all. Wheeling took the lead again on the next possession, but Harmeyer stroked a trey to give the Jackets their first lead since 15-14 with 2:55 to play in the first quarter. Jordan hit a jumper to go up by three then converted the and-one to make it a two-possession game. Wheeling hit a three to close to within a point with 49 seconds to play, but State converted their foul shots while Wheeling's shots wouldn't fall and Stat escaped with the victory.

WVSU held the Cardinals to under 30 percent shooting in the fourth quarter and overtime period, going just 7-for-27 and 1-of-6 from three point land. WVSU shot 42.9 percent from the field in overtime. 

Up Next
State continues the road trip and heads to Elkins Wednesday, Feb. 8. The Jackets defeated the Senators in Institute on Jan. 4, 103-72.
 
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