Tops Close Nonconference Play with Road Game at Austin Peay

WKU Game Notes | Austin Peay Game Notes

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — WKU Hilltopper Basketball wraps up nonconference play at Austin Peay at 7 p.m. CT Friday in Clarksville, Tenn.

The Hilltoppers are coming off a 75-72 loss Tuesday against Belmont at E.A. Diddle Arena.

Austin Peay most recently beat Troy at home Tuesday, 75-73. WKU leads the all-time series against the Governors 40-14 and has won eight straight dating back to 2001.

WKU head coach Rick Stansbury, who was an assist for Austin Peay from 1985-90, is 1-0 in his career against the Governors.

GAME 13

WKU (7-5) at Austin Peay (5-6)
December 22, 2017 | 7 p.m. CT
Clarksville, Tenn. | Dunn Center

BROADCAST

Listen: Hilltopper IMG Sports Network (WKLX 100.7 FM flagship), WKUSports.tv (free), TuneIn Radio (free) (Randy Lee, pxp | Hal Schmitt, analysis)
Watch: OVC Digital Network (online streaming) (Barry Gresham, pxp | Jake Price, analysis)
Live Stats: Austin Peay Stats

QUICK SHOTS

• WKU has made at least one 3-pointer in 950 consecutive games, dating back to March 15, 1987. The 3-point shot was instituted prior to the 1986-87 season. The Hilltoppers' streak is the fifth-longest in the nation behind Kentucky, UNLV, Vanderbilt and Arkansas.
• The Hilltoppers' five losses have come by a total of 22 points – an average of 4.4 points per game.
• WKU ranks 36th in the country in field goal percentage and first in Conference USA at 49.3 percent. That percentage would tie for seventh for a single season in program history.
• WKU ranks second in C-USA in 3-point percentage at 38.3 percent, a mark that would rank fifth in program history. Taveion Hollingsworth is 11 of 18 (61.1 percent) from deep in his last six games.
• WKU ranks 35th in the nation and fourth in C-USA in turnover margin at +3.9, despite ranking 12th in the nation in personal fouls. Lamonte Bearden ranks 43rd in the country and second in C-USA in total steals with 24 through 12 games. No WKU player had more than 28 steals all last season.
• WKU has outscored its opponents 504-344 in the paint this season.
• In his last nine games, Darius Thompson has 44 combined assists and just 13 turnovers. He has at least four assists in 10 of 12 games this season.
• Darius Thompson ranks 30th in the country in minutes per game (36.3) and 34th in total minutes (436).
• Coming into the week, WKU was one of five programs in the nation with two players – Dwight Coleby (4) and Justin Johnson (4) – who had at least four double-doubles each.
• As of Wednesday, Justin Johnson was ranked eighth among active NCAA players for career rebounds and tied for 10th in career double-doubles. He's one of just four active NCAA players with at least 1,200 career points and 800 rebounds.
• Justin Johnson is tied for 24th on WKU's all-time scoring list with 1,269 career points. He needs 24 points to pass Wayne Chapman to move into 23rd.
• Justin Johnson currently ranks eighth on WKU's all-time list for career field goal percentage at 54.6 percent. He's just over one percentage point from fifth place.
• Justin Johnson needs 55 rebounds to tie Dwight Smith for 10th on WKU's all-time list with 856 career rebounds.
• Justin Johnson needs 199 rebounds to reach 1,000 for his career. That would make him just the fifth player in WKU history with 1,000 career points and 1,000 rebounds, joining Tom Marshall, Art Spoelstra, Ralph Crosthwaite and Jim McDaniels, the last to accomplish the feat in 1971.
• Lamonte Bearden is 163 points from reaching 1,000 for his career across his time at Buffalo and WKU.

LAST GAME AGAINST AUSTIN PEAY: DECEMBER 28, 2016

Que Johnson scored 25 points, including three free throws in the final 24 seconds, and WKU held off Austin Peay 97-92 at Diddle Arena. Pancake Thomas finished with 18 points, while Justin Johnson had 17.

MED CENTER HEALTH

The 2017-18 WKU Basketball season is presented by Med Center Health. With The Medical Center at its core, Med Center Health has served Southcentral Kentucky for more than 90 years, and its system of care includes six acute care hospitals, a complete network of immediate to emergency services and services in dozens of specialties. Whether it is emergency treatment for heart attack victims or preventative programs to improve the health of the communities it serves, Med Center Health is committed to providing the highest level of care and service.

How to follow the Hilltoppers: For complete information on WKU Hilltopper Basketball, follow the team's social media channels, @WKUBasketball on Twitter, @WKUBasketball on Instagram, and WKU Basketball on Facebook.

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Players Mentioned

Lamonte Bearden

Dwight Coleby

Taveion Hollingsworth

Justin Johnson

Que Johnson

Pancake Thomas

Darius Thompson