WISE - - The Cavalier men were routed by a tough No. 19 Wheeling Jesuit squad on Saturday afternoon. UVa-Wise (6-10, 4-6 MEC) rallied in the second half but was unable to complete the comeback as they fell to the Cardinals (13-2, 9-1 MEC), 86-72.

Wheeling started out hot, going on a 7-0 run early in the first half to take a 15-5 lead with 14:08 on the clock. Redshirt senior Taiwo Badmus would hit a three to put the Cavs within 10 points, 23-13, at the 11:25 mark.

Three consecutive 3-point shots by the Cardinals would extend their lead to 38-21 with 7:09 left to go in the first half. Wheeling continued to maintain a double-digit lead in the first behind Haywood Highsmith's 5-for-7 shooting as the Cardinals took a 48-36 into the half.

Highsmith led the Cardinals with 14 points in the opening half, going 4-for-4 from three-point range. Badmus and sophomore point guard Michal Seals both saw double-figures in the first half with Badmus collecting 14 points and Seals netting 12 points.

The Cavaliers saw a better half of shooting, going 15 for-32 (46.9 percent) in the first while the Cardinals went 15-for-33 (45.5 percent) from the floor. Wheeling was assisted by eight shots from downtown in the first half with both teams committing just two turnovers.

UVa-Wise continued to fight in the second with a Seals layup putting the Cavs within 10 points, 51-41, with 18:18 on the clock. The Cardinals would go on a 9-0 run to give them a 60-41 advantage with just under 16 minutes to go.

A 3-pointer by sophomore forward Yesid Mosquera-Perea would put UVa-Wise down just nine points, 66-57, with 10:50 remaining. The Cardinals would stay ahead, but a shot from downtown by sophomore guard Chance Sheffey would put the Cavs within 10 points once again, 77-67, at the 5:19 mark.

Wheeling would go on to seal the win behind 13-for-25 (52 percent) shooting in the second half while the Cavs went 12-for-32 (37.5 percent) from the field. Seals would put up another 12 points to end the game with 24 points, four rebounds and five assists.

The Cavaliers shot 17-for-64 (42.2 percent) from the field, hitting 11 shots from beyond the arc in the game. Wheeling shot 28-for-58 (48.3 percent) from the floor, 14-for-26 (53.8 percent) from downtown. UVa-Wise turned the ball over just six times while the Cardinals committed eight turnovers on the night.

The Cardinal's Highsmith finished with 20 points and six rebounds. Jeremiah Wilson and Pat Moseh both collected double-doubles with Wilson posting 10 points and 12 rebounds while Moesh had 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Badmus went 6-for-13 on the night with 17 points and eight rebounds. Sheffey finished with 10 points while Mosquera-Perea collected nine points and seven rebounds in the loss.

The Cavaliers will host West Virginia State University on Wednesday, Jan. 17, at 7:30 p.m. inside the David J. Prior Convocation Center.