Dec 5, 2001
AKRON, Ohio (AP) - Filip Videnof and Todor Pandov each scored 13 points and No. 25 Western Kentucky, playing its second game without center Chris Marcus, beat Akron 78-68 Wednesday night.
Mike Wells and Patrick Sparks each added 10 points for the Hilltoppers (5-2), who built an early lead thanks to Akron shooting 6-for-22 in the first half. They put the game away with an early 11-4 run in the second half.
The surge gave Western Kentucky a 41-26 lead and the Hilltoppers built it to 51-32 on Sparks' 3-pointer with 12:36 to play.
The Zips (2-5) got within 75-68, but that happened with 14 seconds to play.
David Falknor led Akron with 19 points, while Rashon Brown added 15, Darryl Peterson had 12 and Andy Hipsher 10.
The 7-foot-1, 285-pound Marcus will be sidelined for 4-to-6 weeks with a stress fracture in his left ankle. Without him, the Hilltoppers turned to their outside game to snap a two-game losing streak.
Western Kentucky was 25-of-47 from the field - 9-of-23 on 3-pointers - and held its turnovers to 14, after committing 47 the last two games.
Wells came off the bench to score eight points during an early 12-2 run that put the Hilltoppers ahead 15-6.
Layups by David Boyden and Videnof and a 3-pointer by Tremain Rowles gave Western Kentucky its biggest lead of the first half - 29-17 - with four minutes remaining.
