Storylines – vs. Concord University
Head Coach Todd May's team returns home following a 2-1 week for the Mountain Lions, posting wins over Wheeling Jesuit and Charleston while falling to nationally-ranked West Liberty in double-overtime, 109-108. Concord has had back-to-back double-overtime contests, capturing a 99-96 victory against Charleston Wednesday night behind a 65-point effort by senior guard Tommy Bolte. Bolte's 30.6 points per game this season lead both the Mountain Lions and the Mountain East Conference and place him second in the category in national rankings. Bolte also leads his team in assists with 5.1 per game and is averaging 40 minutes per contest so far this season. The Mountain Lions are led in rebounding by junior forward Simun Kovac who is posting 9.2 boards per game followed by junior guard Trey Brisco (6.0) and Bolte (5.1). As a team, Concord is averaging 87.8 ppg with a +5.1 scoring margin over opponents. The Mountain Lions are shooting 46.6 percent from the floor, 38.7 percent from three-point range, and nearly 80 percent from the foul line. Todd May's team is averaging 38.8 rebounds per game, 4.3 more rebounds on average than opponents and recording over five steals a game. Concord outlasted UVa-Wise twice last season in a couple of close games, defeating the Cavaliers by three points on the road before an eight-point victory at home to close out the regular season.
About UVa-Wise
UVa-Wise stays on the road this weekend, wrapping up a four-game road stretch against Concord University Saturday afternoon. The Cavaliers will seek their first road win of the season against the league's top scorer and the second leading scorer in the nation in Concord's senior guard Tommy Bolte. It is the first meeting between the two teams this season after UVa-Wise went 0-2 last year against the Mountain Lions with a three-point loss inside the Prior Center before falling on the road by eight points in the Cavs regular season finale. Blake Mellinger's squad enters into Saturday afternoon's game with a 3-8 league record, 5-11 overall, following the team's road loss to West Virginia State Wednesday night. Against the Yellow Jackets, the Cavs put up a fighting effort in an eight-point loss, 87-79, with redshirt freshman
Briggs Parris leading all scorers netting 29 points on the night, 23 of those points scored in the second half, and connected on seven three-pointers. Freshman guard
Cameron Whiteside posted his first career double-double with 15 points and 10 boards in the loss. The Cavs are averaging 83.3 points per game and shooting 42.8 percent from the floor so far this season. From beyond the arc, UVa-Wise is averaging three more three-pointers per game on 36.8 percent shooting from downtown. Coach Mellinger's team has been effective on defense as the Cavs lead the league in three-point field goal percentage defense with opponents shooting just over 30 percent from beyond the arc, and are fourth in the conference in field goal percentage defense. UVa-Wise will return home after Saturday's game to host West Virginia Wesleyan Wednesday night with tip slated for 7:30 p.m. inside the Prior Center.Â
