Hilltoppers Close Season in Style
West Liberty Tops Wheeling 109-94 In Season Finale
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WHEELING -- Closing out the regular season in style.
West Liberty University's powerhouse Hilltoppers did just that Saturday afternoon against rival and homestanding Wheeling University at a crowded and loud McDonough Center.
Coach Ben Howlett's No. 2 nationally-ranked charges exhibited relentless tenacity and hustle in disposing of the outmanned Cardinals by a 109-94 count. It was the 18th time this season the Gold & Black has topped the century mark.
The repeat triumph over Wheeling enabled Howlett's high-octane Toppers to improve their impressive mark to 26-2 overall and 20-2 in the Mountain East Conference.
West Liberty, on a 12-game winning streak, will enter this week's MEC Tournament at WesBanco Arena as the top seed on the heels of its fifth straight regular-season conference championship. Howlett's charges will be idle until Friday when they face the winner of the No. 8 vs. No. 9 seed contest.
Saturday's win also proved special for West Liberty's Bryce Butler as the talented sophomore reached the 1,000-point career scoring plateau. He is the 53rd Hilltopper to do so.
In addition to his personal milestone, the 6-5 dandy turned in an impressive all-around effort. Butler finished with a game-high 27 points to with 12 rebounds. He now has 1,024 career markers.
West Liberty built a double-digit lead at 22-12 at the 12:05 mark of the first half and never let the Cardinals cut the gap to under 10 the balance of the game.
"I was really happy with our press today. Even when we weren't turning them over it made them work hard to get into their offense," Howlett said. "When we brought our second unit in there was no drop off. Sometimes they increase our intensity. I think it (the press) helped to break their will.
"At halftime, I told them not to take their foot off the gas. We have lost two games in situations like that," added the personable mentor. "I was a little unhappy with the start of the second half with our sloppy passing. But for the most part our passing was really good."
Butler received solid scoring support from Pat Robinson III. The talented junior guard netted 19 points while Christian Montague tallied 15 points in a reserve role.
Will Yoakum chipped in with 14 points and eight boards while Viktor Kovacevic rounded out the Topper double-figure scorers with 11 points. He also delivered six rebounds and four assists.
Chris Richardson's Cardinals dropped to 9-19 overall and 8-13 in the MEC. Wheeling will enter the conference tourney as the No. 9 seed and will play Wednesday night.
"We competed well but the bad start really put us in a hole that we could never climb out of. It was Senior Night and our kids may have been a little too amped up," Richardson said. "But give West Liberty credit. They make you work hard for everything you get.
"We kept hanging around in the second half but we couldn't get within striking distance. I cannot fault our effort," he added. "The atmosphere was great. There was a lot of energy and excitement in the building."
Wheeling placed four players in double figures, topped by Jay Gentry's 24 points. Jarett Haines and Jordan Reid evenly divided 40 counters while former Wheeling Central all-stater Brent Price checked in with 16 points.
Both teams waxed hot from the floor. West Liberty canned 45-of-77 attempts for 58 percent. The hosts meshed 33-of-63 tries for 52 percent.
The Hilltoppers owned a 38-26 rebounding advantage. The winners turned it over 13 times while the Cardinals committed 19 miscues.
West Liberty dropped 10 three-point goals compared to nine for the Redbirds.
West Liberty owned a 57-42 halftime advantage.
"I like where we are heading into the (MEC) tournament. We will be able to give them a couple of days to rest up before we get back at it," Howlett said. "We are playing well but there are some things we can improve on. We need to take it to another level in the tournament."
Richardson views the tournament as another opportunity to continue his program's rebuilding process.
"When I came here my goal was to win MEC championships. The tournament gives us that chance," he said. "We realize if we win our opening-round game that we will be facing West Liberty again. We just want to play as many games as we can in the tournament."
Wheeling honored nine seniors in pre-game ceremonies.