WISE – Junior Cameron Whiteside's late shot in the paint lifted UVA Wise to a 71-70 road win at Lenoir-Rhyne University Wednesday evening. Whiteside finished with a game-high 25 points, going 7-for-7 from the foul line, and added five rebounds and two steals in the game.
Junior Kaeleb Carter recorded 17 points while connecting on three shots from behind the arc and added six rebounds.
The Bears (8-4, 8-4 SAC) took a one-point advantage with 10 seconds on the clock on a Zim Fields' layup. UVA Wise (4-13, 4-13 SAC) regained the lead on a layup by Whiteside with two seconds on the clock as the Cavs held on for the road victory.
Whiteside put the Cavs on the board first with a bucket in the paint but Lenoir-Rhyne responded with a 9-0 run to put the Bears in front with 17:13 to play.
Sophomore Izeah Parker broke up a three-minute scoring drought for the Cavs with a layup to pull UVA Wise within five with just under 16 minutes in the frame.
Carter's back-to-back three's began a 10-0 scoring run for UVA Wise as freshman Ben Bryson's shot with 8:49 on the clock put the Cavs ahead by one-point, 14-13.
The two teams knotted the game at 20 apiece before Lenoir-Rhyne regained its lead, up 27-25 with a little over three minutes in the frame.
A late shot in the half by the Bears' R.J. Gunn pushed Lenoir-Rhyne ahead by two heading into intermission.
Both teams ended the first half shooting 40 percent from the floor while neither team made a trip to the line in the frame. UVA Wise won the first half rebounding battle 19-17 and added two steals and six points off of six Lenoir-Rhyne turnovers.
Parker's dunk to open the second half tied the game once more as the two teams went back-and-forth. Lenoir-Rhyne led by as many as five points over the next several minutes, but another three by Carter tied the contest again at 37 apiece. Carter later used his own 6-0 spurt to put the Cavs ahead 53-45 with 10:18 on the clock.
UVA Wise held a three-point advantage with 3:16 to play, 67-64, as Lenoir-Rhyne continued to claw at the Cavs lead. The Bears took a one-point lead with 10 second on the clock but Whiteside's late game shot lifted UVA Wise to the road victory.
UVA Wise finished the second half shooting 60.7 percent from the field, notching 26 points in the paint. Lenoir-Rhyne concluded the frame shooting 42.4 percent from the floor and added 21 rebounds.
The Cavs ended the game shooting 50 percent (29-for-58) from the field and 70 percent (7-for-10) at the charity stripe. The Bears outrebounded UVA Wise 38-33 while both teams posted 20 assists on the night.
Head coach Blake Mellinger's team will return to the court Saturday as UVA Wise hosts Wingate University in the Cavs final home game of the campaign. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. inside the David J. Prior Convocation Center.
