FAIRMONT, W.Va. -- Fairmont State outlasted Wheeling Jesuit in a tough physical battle, 94-91, on Thursday evening in an early-season Mountain East Conference showdown at Joe Retton Arena. The game featured 13 ties and 10 lead changes before a 15-4 run at the midway point of the second half gave the Falcons the lead for good.

With the game tied for the 13th time at the 10:28 mark of the second half, Fairmont State went on the 15-4 run that last over four minutes and gave the Falcons their largest lead, 75-64, with just over six minutes remaining after Chase Connor drained a three. Wheeling slowly chipped away at the FSU advantage late but never got closer than three the rest of the way.

Fairmont State (6-0, 3-0 MEC) got a team-high 20 points and six rebounds from Matt Bingaya in the win. Bingaya went 9-of-15 from the field in the victory. The Falcons also got 14 points apiece from Thomas Wimbush and Vonte Montgomery and senior Jamel Morris chipped in 10 to go along with four assists. Connor also added nine points as he and Montgomery each hit a trio of three-pointers.

The Falcons shot 55.7 percent (34-of-61) from the field and 46.2 percent (12-of-26) from behind the arc in the victory. After shooting 48 percent in the opening half, the Falcons shot over 64 percent in the second half and nailed 7-of-10 threes to close out the win. The Falcons struggled from the foul line this evening, hitting on just 14-of-25 attempts.

Wheeling also shot over 50 percent from the field on the evening, including 60.6 percent in the second half. However, the Cardinals hit just five threes in the loss. Wheeling did hold a sizable advantage in the paint, holding a 50-40 scoring margin and 41-27 rebounding margin down low.

Wheeling Jesuit (5-1, 2-1 MEC) got a game-high 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting from Justin Fritts, coming off the Cardinal bench. The Cardinals also got 19 points and six assists from Pat Moseh, 17 points from Eric Siefert and a double-double from Haywood Highsmith with 16 points and 10 boards.

The Falcons will travel to No. 1 West Liberty on Saturday afternoon for a 4 p.m. tip at the ASRC.