WISE - - The Cavalier men fell to Charleston 85-74 in a tough battle inside the Prior Center Wednesday night. Senior Rahji Langford led the team with a career-high 17 points and added four rebounds.

Freshmen Kaeleb Carter and Cameron Whiteside each netted 13 points while junior Eric Okenchi also scored in double-figures for the Cavs with 10 points and added five boards and two blocks. Carter and Whiteside led the team in rebounding with seven and six boards, respectively. Junior Chance Sheffey finished with a team-high seven assists and added nine points.

UVa-Wise (9-18, 6-15 MEC) jumped out to a 10-5 lead on a layup by Whiteside with 15:59 on the clock. Charleston (19-8, 14-7 MEC) came back to get within one point before back-to-back shots by sophomore Jordan Pointer regained a five-point lead for the Cavs, 18-13, with 11:43 left in the half.

The two teams would tie the game five times over the course of five minutes with a three-ball by Carter giving the Cavs a 31-28 advantage with just under three minutes to play in the first half. The game stayed close as the Cavs and Golden Eagles knotted the contest at 36-36 heading into halftime.

UVa-Wise shot 43.8 percent (14-for-32) from the field, connecting on just 1-of-10 shots from downtown, and went 100 percent (7-for-7) at the charity stripe. The Cavs were assisted with 22 points inside the paint and 10 points off of six offensive rebounds. UVa-Wise outscored the Golden Eagles 6-0 on fast breaks and had eight points off the bench.

Okenchi netted nine points in the opening half followed by Whiteside who had six to start. Okenchi, Carter, and Whiteside each posted four boards in the first half while Carter added three assists.

Charleston opened the second half hot from the floor with an 8-0 run giving the Golden Eagles a 44-36 advantage less than two minutes into the half. The Golden Eagles extended their lead to 16 points with 14:30 on the clock, 58-42.

Charleston held onto their double-digit lead for the majority of the second half as the Cavs attempted to chip away at the margin with an old-fashioned three-point play by Langford putting UVa-Wise down just seven points, 74-67, with 3:47 to play.

Charleston knocked down four consecutive shots from the foul line to take back a double-digit lead. Sheffey would respond on the other end of the court with back-to-back buckets cutting Charleston's lead to eight points, 82-74, with 1:25 on the clock. The Golden Eagles would secure their win at the free throw line as Charleston went on to win 85-74.

UVa-Wise shot just 38.2 percent (13-for-34) from the floor in the second half, 29.4 percent (5-for-17) from downtown, and 70 percent (7-for-10) from the line. Langford poured in 11 points in the second half while Carter netted 10 points.

The Golden Eagles shot 53.6 percent (15-for-28) from the field, 27.3 percent (3-for-11) from behind the arc, and 69.6 percent (16-for-23) from the charity stripe. Charleston scored 22 points in the paint while the Cavs scored 12 points down low.

The Cavs finished the night shooting 40.9 percent (27-for-66) from the field, just 22.2 percent (6-for-27) from three-point range, and 82.4 percent (14-for-17) from the foul line. Charleston shot 48.3 percent (28-for-58), 28.6 percent (6-for-21) from downtown, and 62.2 percent (23-for-37) from the free throw line.

Blake Mellinger's team returns to action Saturday for their final game of the season inside the Prior Center as the Cavs recognize Langford for Senior Day. Tip against the Concord Mountain Lions is slated for 4 p.m.