On Saturday, Nov. 27, the Tusculum Pioneers and the UVA Wise Cavaliers went wire-to-wire until the final seconds in the David J. Prior Convocation Center, but a three-point play foul drawn by Tusculum's Trenton Gibson with two seconds left to go in the game helped secure an 80-76 win over the UVA Wise Highland Cavaliers.
 

The UVA Wise Highland Cavaliers (0-6, 0-4 SAC) made a huge improvement in their free throw percentage, going from 47.4 percent in their Mars Hill matchup to 69.6 percent against Tusculum.

During the first half,  Tusculum and UVA Wise never let each other take a large lead until a Joel Pettiford jumper began a 10-point run to put the Cavs ahead 17-11 against the Pioneers. A huge dunk by Pettiford solidified an eight-point lead for the Cavs at the 13:54 mark. Ben Bryson's introduction into the season was needed for the Cavs, as he was able to put up a daggering three-pointer to then put the Cavs up 10 points. Bryson was able to put up 4-8 from field-goal range but contributed 7 rebounds on the Cav's effort. 

The Cavs lead in the first half never felt threatened by the Pioneers, as two good free-throws from Bradley Dean sealed a 41-29 lead by the Cavs going into the half. 

Going into the second half, the Pioneers struck first with a nice jumper by Gibson, who ended with 17 points on the night. Pettiford yet again came through for the Cavs with a dunk at the 18:26 mark to grab another 10-point lead. After ten minutes of play had passed, the Pioneers had crawled their way back within three points of the Cavs by a William Vedder layup. Vedder snagged another layup to get Tusculum within one of UVA Wise, but the Cavs found a way to keep the lead as Makai Vassell was able to sink both of his free throws after he was fouled. With five minutes left to go, a Gibson layup was able to get Tusculum the lead for the first time in the second half. The Cavs refused to go down without a fight as a Bradley Dean three-pointer grabbed the Cavs a one-point lead with 1:10 left to go in the game. 

Tensions became high in the David J. Prior Convocation Center as Tusculum's Gibson was fouled by Kaeleb Carter in the last two seconds of the game, giving Gibson the chance the grab a two-point Tusculum lead. After sinking his free throw, Tusculum had secured the win after an Inady Legiste steal and another Carter foul. Tusculum prevailed in the end, winning 80-76.

Vedder of the Pioneers led the Pioneers with a double-double with 8 points and 10 rebounds, with Gibson finishing right behind him with 17. On the Cavs side, Vassell ended the night with a career-high 21 points with teammate Joel Pettiford trailing right behind him with 20. 

Next, the Cavs look to snag their first win against the Newberry Wolves on Wednesday, Dec. 1 in the David J. Prior Convocation Center. Tipoff is slated at 7:30 p.m. 

For all Cavalier news, statistics, and more, visit www.uvawisecavs.com.