Box Score WISE, Va. – UVa-Wise men's basketball was defeated by the No. 1 ranked team in the nation, West Liberty, Saturday evening inside the David J. Prior Convocation Center by a score of 99-69. The visiting top-ranked Hilltoppers (15-0, 9-0 MEC) outscored the host Cavaliers (3-12, 1-8 MEC) 63-40 in the second half to remain unbeaten on the season.
 
Mountain East Conference leader West Liberty used its full-court press to disrupt the Cavs' offense, especially in the last 20 minutes of play. Down by only seven at halftime (36-29) the Hilltoppers forced the Cavs to commit 13 second-half turnovers and 23 for the game, those miscues leading to 24 points for West Liberty.
 
The Hilltoppers scored the first three points of the game that included the first made field goal, a jumper by reigning National Player of the Year Seger Bonifant. However, the Cavs wasted no time in gaining an early lead, taking a 6-3 advantage after a layup by sophomore forward Dimitri Sousa (São Paulo, Brazil) at the 16:18 mark.
 
A three-point basket by sophomore guard Philip Owens II (Virginia Beach, Va.) with 11:38 remaining in the half gave the Cavs their largest lead of the afternoon (15-10). UVa-Wise continued to lead until a conventional three-point play by West Liberty's Zac Grossenbacher gave the Hilltoppers back the lead at 19-17 with 9:14 to go in the first half.
 
The Cavs would trail for the remainder of the half and were down by as much as nine with 5:53 left. A 12-5 scoring run by the Cavs that was capped by a three-pointer from senior forward Matt Day (Buckhorn, Ky.) cut the deficit down to two (31-29) with 2:27 to go. However, UVa-Wise did not score the rest of the half and went into the break down 36-29.
 
Shooting the ball at 40.7 percent (11-for-27) in the opening half, the Cavs were 2-for-14 (14.3 percent) from downtown and 5-for-6 (83.3 percent) from the free-throw line. West Liberty went 12-for-36 (33.3 percent) in the opening 20 minutes and only hit three shots from beyond the arc for an unusual 18.8 percent.
 
Despite scoring the first points of the second half off of a layup by Day, the Cavs were held scoreless for the next four and a half minutes as the Hilltoppers scored 10 straight points to gain a 46-31 lead at the 15:41 mark.
 
Over the next four minutes the Hilltoppers would slowly increase their lead and continue to confuse the Cavs' offense. West Liberty led by 24 (63-39) with 11:03 remaining before UVa-Wise went on a short, 8-1 run to reduce the advantage to 17 after a three-pointer by Day.
 
After going on a 16-0 scoring run in two minutes and 27 seconds, the Hilltoppers increased their lead to 33 points (80-47) with 7:20 to go. A pair of foul shots by West Liberty's Evan French gave the Hilltoppers their largest lead of the night at 34 (84-50) with 6:23 still left on the clock.
 
UVa-Wise was not able to cut down the deficit to less than 28 in the final six and a half minutes as the Cavs didn't make a field goal in the final 2:06.
 
Although the Cavs held the top-ranked Hilltoppers below their nation-leading scoring average (106.9) and three-point field goals made per game (12.6), UVa-Wise still succumbed to West Liberty's 30-point margin of victory average. The Cavs were outrebounded 43-35, including 21-13 in the second half, and were outscored off the bench 36-20.
 
Day led all Cavs with a game-high 10 rebounds and 20 points, while Owens II scored 12 points and dished out a game-high seven assists. Junior transfer forward Gervelle Kidd (Martinsville, Va.) contributed nine points and six boards as Sousa finished with eight points and seven rebounds. Redshirt freshman guards Lashain Matthews (Staunton, Va.) and Camryn Fort (Fayetteville, N.C.) had seven points each.
 
National and MEC scoring-leader Bonifant finished with a game-high 25 points for the Hilltoppers on 10-for-13 shooting to go along with seven rebounds and three assists. West Liberty's Grossenbacher tallied 17 points and seven boards, while David Dennis Jr. and French each added 10 points.
 
The Cavs will have a quick turnaround, facing 24th-ranked Wheeling Jesuit University Monday night at 7:30 p.m. inside the Prior Center.