WHEELING, West Virginia- The Salem Tigers men's basketball team started the Mountain East Conference portion of the schedule today. The Tigers headed up to Wheeling for a 4 PM Saturday evening match up against the Cardinals. Salem was looking to get back in the win column after dropping two games in a row. The Tigers got off to a big lead, but unfortunately the Cardinals made a huge comeback to take the victory with a buzzer beater winning shot to win 75-74. 

In the first half, both offenses starting out slow with the game being knotted up at 5 with 16 minutes remaining. At the 10-minute mark, both teams were still tied up this time at 15 after DJ Harrell and Kevin Constant both got a bucket. Salem was able to go on a 15-3 run over the next 5 minutes of play with Jalen Barnes scoring 5 points during that stretch. Closing out the half, the Tigers extended their lead even more holding a 43-25 lead heading into intermission. 

In the second, Salem maintained their 18-point lead for the first 5 minutes of the second half. However, Wheeling did not give up and ended up cutting the deficit to 5 by the 10-minute mark. DJ Harrell scored a few buckets over the next 3 minutes of play to help the Tiger build their lead back. Salem held a 68-57 lead with 7 minutes remaining in game time. Unfortunately, Wheeling fought back again and was able to tie the game up with around 2 minutes left of play. Kevin Constant hit a huge layup with 29 seconds left to give the Tigers a 74-72 lead. However, Wheeling would come back down the court and knock down a three at the buzzer to secure the 75-74 victory over Salem.

In the stats sheet, Jalen Barnes led the way for the Tigers with 15 points. Isaac James secured a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds.

After a tough defeat, the Tigers will have a chance to redeem themselves on Tuesday evening when the West Liberty Hilltoppers come into town.