GLENVILLE, W.Va. – The Glenville State Men's Basketball team picked up a hard-fought home win on Friday (Nov. 21) afternoon, defeating Bluefield State, 68-67, inside the Waco Center. The Pioneers improved to (2-1) on the season behind a loud home opening crowd on Kids Day. The Pioneers were 50% shooting from the field and 10 made threes in a game that saw 11 lead changes and five ties.
1st Half
Bluefield State came out firing, using a hot stretch from Ellija Preddy to build an early double-digit lead. A 24-11 advantage by the midway point of the half forced Glenville State to respond. The Pioneers settled in offensively behind Elijah Redfern and Prince Mosengo attacking the paint, while Jalen Knott provided a spark from the perimeter. Knott buried four first-half threes, and Ammar Maxwell closed the half strong with multiple finishes at the rim, cutting into the Big Blue's lead with Maxwell's jumper in the lane in the final seconds as GSU went into the locker room trailing 39-35 despite shooting 54% from the field and 6-of-11 from three in the opening period.
2nd Half
Glenville State quickly flipped the momentum after halftime. Maxwell opened the second half with a layup and then drilled a three from the wing to give the Pioneers their first lead since the early minutes, 41-39. A pair of free throws from Mosengo and a transition three from Redfern pushed the lead to 46-41, but Bluefield State continued to answer behind Preddy and Myles Pierre, keeping the game within one or two possessions.
With the score tight midway through the half, Glenville State got key contributions from its front court. Mosengo knocked down back-to-back threes to push the advantage to 57-55, and Callum Crossman scored inside to make it 59-57. Moments later, Rye Gadd finished a strong drive in transition to extend the lead to 61-57. Knott continued to control the offense late, weaving through the lane for another layup to put GSU up 63-57 with just over six minutes remaining. Bluefield State responded again, and a Pierre layup brought the Big Blue within one at 66–65.
With under two minutes to play, Gadd stepped to the line and calmly sank two free throws, stretching the Pioneer lead to 68-65. Pierre hit two free throws on the other end to make it 68-67 with 54 seconds left, but Glenville State's defense came up with the stops it needed in the final minute. The Pioneers forced contested looks on Bluefield State's last possessions and held on for the one-point victory.
Final Stats
Bluefield State
- Ellija Preddy – 22 points, 10-of-19 from the floor
- Myles Pierre – 18 points, 3 threes, 5-of-5 from the line
- Anthony Davenport – 10 points, 5 rebounds
- Anthony Latty – 16 rebounds, 8 points
The Big Blue held a 19-0 edge in second-chance points and out-rebounded GSU 34–25, but shot just 28.6% from three and 64.7% from the free throw line.
Glenville State
- Jalen Knott – 19 points, 4-of-11 from three, 6 assists, 4 rebounds
- Ammar Maxwell – 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting, 2-of-2 from three
- Prince Mosengo – 13 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 threes
- Elijah Redfern – 10 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal
- Rye Gadd – 7 points off the bench, including two clutch free throws late
The Pioneers shot 50.0% (25-of-50) from the field, 43.5% (10-of-23) from three, and scored 28 points in the paint while turning 12 Bluefield State turnovers into 19 points.
Up Next For The Pioneers
Glenville State heads to Slippery Rock on Tuesday (Nov. 25) for a 2 p.m. tipoff in Pennsylvania.
