WISE - - Cold shooting and missed opportunities at the free throw line hindered the Cavaliers as they fell to West Virginia Wesleyan, 71-70 on Wednesday night. UVa-Wise (4-6, 3-2 MEC) shot just 23-for-71 (32.4 percent) from the field and missed nine of the team's first half free throw shots. Three Cavaliers saw double-digit points while redshirt senior forward Taiwo Badmus finished with a double-double, posting 15 points and a season-high 17 rebounds on the night.

UVa-Wise maintained the lead for much of the first half, going up by nine points over the Bobcats (1-8, 1-4 MEC) with 11:23 on the clock to take an 18-9 lead. The Cavs would control another nine point advantage at the 4:47 mark to go up 26-17 over Wesleyan.

The Cavaliers struggled from the foul line to start the game, going 6-for-15 (40 percent) and hitting only one three-pointer on seven shots from beyond the arc.

The Bobcats would go on an 8-0 run to tie the game at 29-29 with 2:38 left to go in the half. Wesleyan would get back-to-back buckets from sophomore forward Luke Layhew to head into halftime ahead of the Cavaliers, 33-29. The Cavaliers shot 11-for-34 (32.4 percent) from the field in the first half while the Bobcats went 13-for-34 (38.2 percent) in the opening half.

A layup by sophomore forward Yesid Mosquera-Perea would tie the game up at 33-33 with 18:57 on the clock to open the second half. However, the Bobcats would take back the lead on the next possession behind a jumper by sophomore forward Dusan Vicentic to go up 35-33. Wesleyan would keep the advantage for the rest of the game, taking their largest lead of the night by thirteen points with 8:40 to go, 58-45.

The Cavaliers would fight to come back in the final minutes of the game, with a layup by sophomore guard Chance Sheffey cutting the lead for the Bobcats to one point with just under a minute to go. UVa-Wise was unable to connect on shots in the final seconds of the game, giving the Bobcats their first win of the season by a score of 71-70.

Both the Cavaliers and Bobcats went 1-for-6 (16.7 percent) from downtown in the second half. UVa-Wise managed to improve foul shooting, hitting 16-of-21 (76.2 percent) while Wesleyan went 11-for-20 (55 percent) from the line in the second half.

UVa-Wise and Wesleyan both had 38 points in the paint but the Bobcats bench provided them with an edge, adding 23 points while the Cavaliers had just seven bench points. Wesleyan finished the night going 26-for-62 (41.9 percent) from the field and 14-for-24 (58.3 percent) from the foul line. The Bobcats committed 21 turnovers on the night compared to just eight turnovers for the Cavaliers.

Sophomore point guard Michal Seals had a season-high 26 points and added eight rebounds while Sheffey finished with 12 points for the Cavaliers. Senior forward Aaron Ariri led the Bobcats with a double-double, posting 12 rebounds and 13 points in Wesleyan's win.

UVa-Wise will head to Glenville, W.Va. on Saturday to take on the Pioneers of Glenville State College. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.