INSTITUTE, W.Va. – No. 20-ranked West Liberty saw a game-tying 3-point shot fall off the iron at the buzzer here Wednesday night as West Virginia State held on for a wild, 96-93, upset win at the Walker Center.
    The loss snapped an 11-game winning streak for Coach Ben Howlett's Hilltoppers (17-4, 12-3), who retained their one-game lead in the Mountain East Conference thanks to No. 25 Charleston's upset loss to Wheeling.
    West Liberty and the Yellow Jackets (15-5, 10-5) saw momentum swing back and forth throughout an intense contest which featured 10 ties and 15 lead changes.
    The Hilltoppers took a 71-67 lead with 11 minutes to go on a Will Yoakum 3-pointer but were held without a basket for the next three minutes as State took off on a 12-1 run.
    A Glen Abram free throw capped the surge for a 79-72 Yellow Jacket lead with 7:53 remaining.
    West Liberty was unable to cut into the lead and State appeared to have put the game on ice when a pair of Isaiah Noel free throws pushed the margin into double figures, 92-82, at the 3-minute mark.
    The Hilltoppers made one last push with Yoakum knocking down a pair of free throws to make it a one-possession game, 95-93, with 1:14 remaining but the Black and Gold couldn't get over the hump.
    Neither team scored on its next two possessions and a West Liberty turnover set up a Noel free throw with 3.5 seconds to go which provided the final points of the night.
    Noel misfired on his second charity toss and the Hilltoppers managed to get across half-court before Dyer launched a 40-footer that drew plenty of iron but refused to drop.
    Yoakum just missed a double-double with 29 points and 9 rebounds while Bolon hit seven 3-pointers and added 28 points along with 9 rebounds before fouling out with 2 minutes to go. Dyer added 14 points and 5 assists as WLU went 35-of-82 (42 percent) from the floor, 16-of-46 (34 percent) from the 3-point arc and 7-of-8 (87 percent) from the foul line.
    Abram poured in 28 of his game-high 38 points in the first half with Noel adding 22 tallies. Carmearl Thomas was 7-for-7 from the floor while working the paint for 15 points and a dozen boards. The Yellow Jackets - who shot a blistering 70 percent from the floor in the first half - finished the night 30-of-53 (56 percent) from the floor, 7-of-16 (43 percent) from the 3-point arc and 29-of-41 (70 percent) from the foul line.
    West Virginia State was 20-of-28 from the charity stripe in the final 20 minutes. The Black and Gold cashed in three of their four second half free throws.
    West Liberty returns home for a Top 25 showdown against Charleston on Sunday. The battle for first place in the MEC will be featured on the NCAA Division II Basketball Showcase and tip off at 4 p.m.