Hilltoppers Square Off with UCF on Sunday For Myrtle Beach Title

WKU Game Notes

THE TIP-OFF

CONWAY, S.C. — WKU Hilltopper Basketball will play for a title this week, facing UCF in the Myrtle Beach Invitational championship game at 5:30 p.m. CT Sunday on the campus of Coastal Carolina in Conway, S.C. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.

WKU defeated RV/No. 13 West Virginia 63-57 in Friday's semifinal to advance to the title game. UCF beat Saint Joseph's 77-57 in the other semifinal.

The Hilltoppers are 3-0 all-time against UCF with the last meeting in 2005. WKU head coach Rick Stansbury has never faced the Knights in his career.

GAME 5

Myrtle Beach Invitational Championship Game
UCF (3-1) vs. WKU (3-1)
November 18, 2018 | 6:30 p.m. CT
HTC Center | Conway, S.C.

BROADCAST

Listen: Hilltopper IMG Sports Network (WKLX 100.7 FM flagship), WKUSports.tv (free), TuneIn Radio (Jeff Younglove, pxp | Hal Schmitt, analysis)
Watch: ESPN2 (Rich Hollenberg, pxp | Debbie Antonelli, analysis)
Live Stats: Myrtle Beach Stats

QUICK SHOTS

• The Hilltoppers will be trying Sunday to win their first in-season tournament championship since beating No. 4 Kentucky and George Washington in 2001 to claim the NABC Classic title.
• After defeating RV/No. 13 West Virginia on Friday and No. 18/16 Purdue last season, this is the first time WKU has beaten top-25 teams in back-to-back seasons since 2008-09.
• WKU is 6-3 in neutral-site games since the beginning of the 2017-18 season, including wins over Valparaiso and top-25 West Virginia this week, and top-25 Purdue and SMU at the 2017 Battle 4 Atlantis.
• The Hilltoppers have made a 3-pointer in 980 straight games dating back to March 15, 1987. WKU entered the season tied with Arkansas for the fourth-longest streak in the nation of consecutive games with a made 3. Only UNLV (1,039), Vanderbilt (1,031) and Duke (1,021) had longer streaks to start the year.
• The Hilltoppers are 39-1 under head coach Rick Stansbury when leading with five minutes to play.
• Sophomore Taveion Hollingsworth has scored at least 10 points in 30 of his 42 career games. He's scored at least 20 points in 10 of those outings, including a 23-point showing against Valparaiso on Nov. 15.
• Last season, Taveion Hollingsworth was named to the Conference USA All-Freshman Team and set new Hilltopper records in 2017-18 for most points scored (506), minutes played (1,312) and games started (38) by a freshman. He and graduate senior Desean Murray were named to the Preseason All-C-USA Team.
• Not only is freshman center Charles Bassey the highest-rated recruit to play for WKU in several decades, he's also one of the top-five youngest players in college basketball this season.
• In two games against top-25 competition, Charles Bassey has averaged 12 points and 13.5 rebounds.
• After just three college games, Charles Bassey needs just three blocks to reach WKU's all-time top 10 list for most blocks in a season by a freshman.

LAST GAME AGAINST UCF: DECEMBER 19, 2005

Courtney Lee had 22 points, nine rebounds and five steals, and the Hilltoppers rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit to defeat UCF 73-68 in the first round of the Fiesta Bowl Classic in Tuscon, Ariz. Anthony Winchester added 14 points and eight rebounds for WKU.

MED CENTER HEALTH

The 2018-19 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.

Hilltoppers Square Off with UCF on Sunday For Myrtle Beach Title

Players Mentioned

Charles Bassey

Taveion Hollingsworth

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