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Fairmont State 102, West Liberty 99 | Final Stats
WHEELING, W.Va. -- Fairmont State took home its first conference tournament title since 1984 with a 102-99 win over West Liberty on Sunday afternoon at WesBanco Arena. 

The Falcons (14-4) avenged two previous losses to West Liberty, falling 96-84 back on Jan. 13, and then dropping a 30-point decision just two weeks ago, 126-96. Fairmont State, ranked sixth in the most recent Atlantic Region rankings, also assured itself of a spot in the tournament with the automatic bid. 

Meanwhile, West Liberty (15-4) will await its NCAA Tournament fate tonight during the NCAA's selection show. 

Fairmont State led nearly from the opening tip, and built a 17-point lead before the game was 10 minutes old. West Liberty promptly responded with a run of its own, and got the lead back under double digits at the 9:01 mark after a Marlon Moore three. FSU would slow the run and take a 47-35 lead into the locker room. 

The Hilltoppers continued to chip away at the lead in the second half and got it down to within two at 62-60 with 11:03 left to play to cap a 10-3 run. The Falcons again had the answer, pushing their lead back to 11 before West Liberty made one last push. 

Trailing 90-79 with just 1:35 left, the Hilltoppers took advantage of missed opportunities at the free throw line and scored seven-straight points in just :36 seconds left. The teams traded free throws each of the next two times down the floor, but after Dale Bonner made just 1-of-2, Luke Dyer's three made it just a one-point game with :06 seconds left. Cole Vonhandorf knocked down a pair of free throws, and Fairmont State opted to put WLU on the free throw line rather than have a chance to tie the game with a three. Robinson made both of his, and Isaiah Sanders did the same for Fairmont State to set up the identical scenario again with just seconds remaining. West Liberty made the first and intentionally missed the second to try and grab the rebound and putback, but the fouled in pursuit of the rebound and Zyon Dobbs made 1-of-2 to make it a 102-99 game. Dyer's desperation attempt would not go as the Falcons held on.

“It was a crazy game,” Fairmont State head coach Tim Koenig said. “Those guys fight to the last second. Nothing is really over with them.

“They really beat us up good this year in the regular season. I'm so proud of the guys staying with it and staying level-headed throughout all of the runs. It was a huge win."

“It was a tough loss for us,” Howlett said. “We were extremely excited to play in this championship game again. I didn't think we played a very good first half. We felt fortunate to just be down 12 at halftime.

“I'm proud of our guys with fight. We didn't cave in or give up. We gave ourselves a chance at the end to possibly tie it, but we just fell short. Give Fairmont all of the credit. They had a really good game plan against us. Hopefully we put ourselves in a position to make the NCAA Tournament.”

Dale Bonner turned in a 34-point performance, including 19 in the second half, and played all 40 minutes to help lead the Falcons. Isaiah Sanders, who was part of Notre Dame's tournament championship team two seasons ago under Koenig, was named the MEC Tournament MVP after scoring 25 points against the Hilltopppers.

“This is real special,” Sanders said. “It's a feeling like no other. Everyone bought in at the right time. We had some games this season where we struggled a little bit, but we regrouped, came together as one and the results showed today.

“We played together and never gave up. They went on their runs and we went on ours. We were resilient. I love these guys. We fought hard on both ends of the floor and it just showed how dangerous our team can be. I've always said that. I love the feeling, though. It's crazy.”

Fairmont State's Cole Vonhandorf scored 17 points. 

The Falcons shot 54 percent from the field (32-of-59), and 61 percent from three-point range (11-of-18), in the win. West Liberty was also 54 percent from the field (36-of-67), and was 43 percent from deep (15-of-35).

Pat Robinson had a team-best 27 points for West Liberty, while Luke Dyer had a career-high 24. Bryce Butler had 16 points and seven rebounds. 

Notes
• The win was Fairmont State's first Mountain East Conference Tournament championship. FSU had played for the title in 2017 losing to West Liberty, 67-65 and in 2015 losing to Glenville State, 65-58.
• The game set records for points in a game (FSU 102), points in a half (West Liberty 64), free throws made (Fairmont 27) and Fairmont's 12-point halftime lead (47-35) tied the record for the largest lead at the break. West Liberty also tied the record for field goals made (36).
• No team has won back-to-back MEC Tournament championships. In the eight-year history of the league seven different teams have won the tournament title. West Liberty is the only school to win two (2017 and 2020).

All-Tournament Team
Lamont McManus, UC
Jeremiah Moore, WVSU
John Wiliams, GSC
Hegel Augustin, GSC
Dalton Bolon, WLU
Pat Robinson, WLU
Dale Bonner, FAIR
MVP-Isaiah Sanders, FAIR

Highest Scoring Average: John Williams, GSC

Heart & Hustle: Pat Robinson, WLU