INSTITUTE, W.Va. – No. 12 Fairmont State (5-1, 3-1 Mountain East Conference) fell in overtime to West Virginia State (7-0, 4-0 MEC) on Saturday (Dec. 3) at the Walker Convocation Center. The game featured 26 lead changes and 11 tied scores.
WVSU's Taevon Horton hit the game-tying three-point basket with seven seconds remaining to force an overtime period. The Yellow Jackets came out on top in the highly contested overtime battle, 101-99.
Fonz Hale (24 points) and
Isaiah Sanders (22 points) both led the Falcons in scoring. The duo added a combined nine assists, and Sanders came up with three steals.
George Mangas finished with 16 points, while
David Jolinder and
Tariq Woody each contributed 10 points.
Seth Younkin pulled down nine rebounds to lead the Falcons.
Fairmont State began the game by outscoring the home team 11-2.
Zyon Dobbs found Woody for a layup that concluded the early run for the Falcons. WVSU clawed back into the game and took its first lead, 16-15, at the 10:49 mark of the first half. A Sanders three and two successful free throws from Hale pulled Fairmont State ahead by six points with 8:07 to go in the half. Neither team led by more than five points in the final five minutes of the period. Woody drilled a jump shot that gave Fairmont State a one-point lead after one half.
The second half continued to be tight, with both teams seeking to find an advantage. Neither team led by more than five points during the second half. Down two with 6:16 left in the second half, Sanders converted two free throws and finished a steal-and-score that put Fairmont State ahead, 79-77. The Yellow Jackets regained the lead after a Samier Kinsler three. A Jolinder jump shot put the Falcons back in front with 4:53 on the clock.
After the Yellow Jackets built a four-point lead, Hale pulled the Falcons to within one point with a three. Sanders made it back-to-back threes for the Falcons and Fairmont State led by two with 2:10 remaining in the second half. After just under two minutes of scoreless play, Mangas increased the Fairmont State cushion to 90-85 with 22 seconds to go. Malik Whitaker went 3-for-3 at the charity stripe to trim the Falcons' lead to one possession. Trailing by three points with less than 10 seconds remaining, Horton delivered a game-tying triple and sent the game to overtime.
The Yellow Jackets carried the momentum into overtime and started the extra period on a 5-0 run. Mangas finessed a layup and Fairmont State trailed WVSU by three points halfway through overtime. Noah Jordan boosted the Yellow Jackets' lead to six after a three. Sanders nailed his fourth shot from beyond the arc with 1:16 on the clock. The Falcons had multiple three-point attempts to tie the game in the final minute of overtime. WVSU held on and was victorious in overtime.
Fairmont State men's basketball looks to rebound on Tuesday (Dec. 6) at Concord. The Falcons and Mountain Lions will play from Athens, W.Va. beginning at 7:30 p.m.
