It’s a Wake-Out Call

Former local prep star Mike Gansey spent his summer shooting baskets on Cleveland State’s cozy court, picturing himself making a big shot in an NCAA tournament game.

Remarkably, he got the chance on the very same court, and made the shot. Then another, and another.

Shooting at those familiar baskets, the junior guard scored a career-high 29 points -- 19 of them in the two overtimes -- and the Mountaineers sent second-seeded Wake Forest to another stunning second-round loss, 111-105, on Saturday night.

West Virginia (23-10) will play Texas Tech next in the Albuquerque Regional, its deepest tournament run since it made the round of 16 in 1998. The Mountaineers have beaten seven top 25 teams this season, a school record.

The crowd at Cleveland State rooted Wisconsin Milwaukee to an upset of Boston College in the first game, then reveled as Wake Forest (27-6) became the first Atlantic Coast Conference team knocked out of the tournament.

“This is just a dream come true,” said Gansey, who went to a suburban high school and worked out this summer in Wolstein Center with his brother, Steve, a guard at Cleveland State. “It’s an unbelievable feeling.”

For Wake Forest as well. After one of its most promising seasons ended with another overtime loss -- the Demon Deacons were 0-3 in OT this season -- the players couldn’t comprehend what had just happened.

“It was what? Three OTs? Two OTs? It was just a long game,” said point guard Chris Paul, who fouled out with 3:24 left in the second overtime. “We got a little fatigued at the end, and Gansey kept making play after play after play.”

High expectations accompanied the Demon Deacons, who also lost in the second round as a No. 2 seed in 2003. They returned every scholarship player from last season, were ranked No. 1 in the country for two weeks and set a school record for wins in the NCAA opener.

The burden appeared to weigh on them in their 70-54 win over Chattanooga on Thursday. Several players conceded they felt some opening-game jitters.

This time, they couldn’t hold onto a 13-point halftime lead or hold off a hot team. West Virginia tore through the Big East tournament to reach the final, developing a knack for big finishes.

None was bigger than this one.

“I just hope we have a city when we get back to school,” guard J.D. Collins said. “It might get burned down.”

Gansey, who had about 300 friends and relatives in the stands, made a free throw that tied it at 77-77 with 21 seconds left in regulation.

He was just getting started.

The frenetic pace stretched into overtime, with neither team ahead by more than a couple of baskets. It was tied at 93-93 when Wake Forest center Eric Williams blocked Johannes Herber’s driving layup with two seconds to go at the end of the first overtime.

Paul scored 10 points in the first overtime, helping Wake Forest keep up with Gansey, who had 10 in the first overtime and nine more in the second.

“We were down, it’s the story of our season,” West Virginia Coach John Beilein said. “We didn’t quit.”

They were in trouble at halftime, trailing, 40-27, with no idea how to contain the Demon Deacons’ punishing inside game. Williams had 23 points and 12 rebounds in the game.

Wake Forest extended its defense to contain the Mountaineers’ shooters, who set a school record for three-pointers this season.

Instead, West Virginia started taking the ball inside and scoring at will, and the Demon Deacons lost their grip on the game.

It finally ended when Wake Forest’s Trent Strickland missed a three-pointer with 29 seconds left in the second overtime, and Herber’s fastbreak layup sealed it with 13 seconds to go. Patrick Beilein, the son of the West Virginia coach, threw the ball the length of the floor in jubilation when the buzzer sounded.

“I mean, you know, this is a dream come true,” Gansey said.