ATHENS, W.Va. — West Virginia State (3-2, 1-1) fell to Concord (1-4, 1-1), 90-78, on Wednesday afternoon, at the Carter Center. Despite a strong second-half push, WVSU could not overcome Concord's offensive rebounds and efficient free-throw shooting in the final minutes.

The first half was tightly contested, with both teams trading leads. WVSU briefly led 2-0 with a layup from Jae Slack at 18:46, but Concord responded quickly. Amare Smith gave Concord a 7-4 advantage with a three-pointer at 15:30. The Yellow Jackets tied it at 9-9 with a fast-break layup from Miguel Martinez at 14:35, and continued to battle Concord. However, after a three-pointer from Josiah Rickards, Concord gained a 5-point lead at 14:44. WVSU narrowed the margin to 33-33 with a dunk from Martinez just before halftime, but Concord held a slight 35-33 lead going into the break.

The second half saw Concord increase their lead to 8 points at 3:42, but WVSU kept fighting, cutting the deficit to 6 points in the closing moments. However, Concord's offensive rebounds and free-throw shooting sealed their victory, extending the lead to 12 points by the game's end.

Jaden Byers led the Yellow Jacket offense with 16 points, Arthur Cox contributed 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists. Nate Mims was just shy of a double-double with 9 points and 10 rebounds. Miguel Martinez contributed 9 points, and Aymeric Toussaint chipped in 7 points. Jae Slack finished with 14 points, including 10-of-12 from the free-throw line, along with 5 rebounds. Kenyon Giles had 5 points, and Dakari Bradford and Aboubacar Cisse also contributed off the bench.

For Concord, Kollin Tolbert was the standout performer, scoring 25 points, grabbing 8 rebounds, and adding 4 assists. Amare Smith posted 13 points and 6 rebounds. Georges Archer contributed 14 points, and Kraig Gilbert had 9 points and 7 rebounds. Rene Diop and Josiah Rickards each added 8 points, while Ken Sallee finished with 5 points. Boubacar Djigo, Brendan Hoffman, and John Gabbert also saw minutes for Concord.

WVSU shot 40% (26-of-65) from the field, 22.2% (2-of-9) from three, and 61.5% (24-of-39) from the free-throw line. Concord shot 40.0% (29-of-73) from the field, 28.6% (6-of-21) from three, and 86.7% (26-of-30) from the free-throw line. Concord out-rebounded WVSU 50-41, including a 15-12 advantage on the offensive glass. The Yellow Jackets committed 8 turnovers, while Concord had 9.

The Yellow Jackets will travel to Gannon over the Thanksgiving break to take part in the Golden Knights' Thanksgiving Classic on Nov. 30-Dec. 1. First up will be against the hosts on Nov. 30 at 6 p.m.