WHEELING, W.Va. - - Down by 10 points heading into the half, UVa-Wise completed another comeback victory to stun Wheeling Jesuit, 81-78, on the road. Sophomore guard Chance Sheffey put the Cavaliers ahead with a shot from downtown with nine seconds on the clock, putting the Cavaliers (9-13, 7-9 MEC) up by one point, 79-78, over the Cardinals.A costly foul by Wheeling put sophomore point guard Michal Seals at the line with three seconds left in regulation. Seals knocked down both shots to seal the 81-78 win over the Cardinals (17-5, 12-4 MEC).

The Cavaliers started the game with high energy with Sheffey tying the ball game up 6-6 early in the first half. UVa-Wise kept it close with a basket by Seals putting the score at 11-10 with 14:29 to go. Wheeling's Preston Boswell's shot from downtown would give the Cardinals a 21-10 advantage at the 10:32 mark.

With just a little over five minutes to go in the first, a shot by Wheeling's Brent Pegram gave the Cardinals a 12-point advantage, 31-19. The Cardinals maintained a double-figure lead to close out the first half with a 40-30 lead to start the second.

Wheeling Jesuit shot 15-for-31 (48.4 percent) from the field and went 38.5 percent from downtown. The Cardinals were led in scoring in the first half by Haywood Highsmith who had 14 points and nine rebounds.

UVa-Wise struggled offensively in the opening half, hitting just 13-of-34 (38.2 percent) shots from the floor and going 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. Seals led the Cavs in the first half with eight points, three rebounds, and two assists. Redshirt senior forward Taiwo Badmus and Yesid Mosquera-Perea both netted seven points to start the game.

The Cavs strongly improved from the floor in the second half, going 17-for-30 (56.7 percent) from the floor and banking 6-of-13 (46.2 percent) from downtown. UVa-Wise missed just two shots from the line to go 11-for-13 (84.6 percent) in the second.

Wheeling's shooting performance declined, shooting 46.9 percent from the field.

A 3-pointer by Sheffey put the Cavs down just seven points at the 17:53 mark, 46-39. Junior guard Rahji Langford would get the tip-in off a missed shot to get the Cavs within five, 50-45 with 14:23 to go.

Another shot from downtown by Sheffey would shift the momentum for the Cavs. Back-to-back buckets by Mosquera-Perea and Sheffey cut the deficit to five points, 61-56, for UVa-Wise with 9:40 on the clock.

A series of made free throws between Sheffey and Badmus put the Cavs down one, 64-63, with less than eight minutes to play. Wheeling's Boswell would take it to the other end to hit a 3-point shot, but Mosquera-Perea would respond with a shot from beyond the arc to keep the Cavs within one, 67-66.

Down by three, Seals would knock down another three for the Cavaliers to tie up the ball game at 69 apiece with 6:22 left in regulation. Badmus would hit two more from the line to put the Cavs up by two, 71-69 with 5:39 to play.

Wheeling would take a two-point advantage, 78-76, with a little over a minute on the clock, but Sheffey's career-high third 3-pointer and Seals free throws would push the Cavaliers over the edge, upsetting the Cardinals, 81-78.

Seals and Sheffey both had 13 points in the second half, followed by Badmus who put up nine points and added four rebounds.

The Cardinals shot 30-for-63 (47.6 percent) from the field, hitting 7-of-21 (33.3 percent) from 3-point range. Haywood Highsmith finished with a double-double tallying 30 points and 13 rebounds. Pat Moseh also had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds while Boswell added 20 points in the loss.

UVa-Wise went 46.9 percent from the field, 40.9 percent from beyond the arc, and 80 percent from the foul line in the win.

All five starters saw double-figures for the Cavs, led by Seals who finished with 21 points, seven rebounds, and six assists. Badmus had 16 points and eight rebounds while Sheffey shot 50 percent from the floor with 15 points. Mosquera-Perea netted 14 points with six rebounds as senior guard Ricardo Hill Jr. followed with ten points, adding three rebounds and two assists.

UVa-Wise will have a four-game home stand following this trip, with the team's first game against Fairmont State on Thursday, Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m. inside the David J. Prior Convocation Center.