FRISCO, Texas — WKU Hilltopper Basketball started the Conference USA Basketball Championship with a little revenge Thursday.
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Five days after losing at UAB by 28 in the regular-season finale, the third-seeded Hilltoppers (23-9) stormed past the sixth-seeded Blazers 98-70 in the C-USA Championship quarterfinals at the Ford Center at The Star.
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WKU advances to face No. 2 seed Old Dominion at 3 p.m. CT Friday in the semifinals. The Hilltoppers have advanced to the conference tournament semifinals in 12 of the last 14 seasons.
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The Hilltoppers led most of the first half, but trailed by three when they took control with a 16-2 run to end the frame, building a 46-35 advantage.
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WKU shot 62.1 percent in the second half, 59.7 percent overall and netted 19 of 22 free throws with just six turnovers.
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Freshman guard Taveion Hollingsworth led all scorers with 22 points, while senior guard Darius Thompson finished with 20 points, seven assists, four rebounds and four steals.
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Senior forward Justin Johnson and redshirt junior guard Lamonte Bearden each scored 19 points, while Johnson added 10 boards. Freshman guard Josh Anderson scored 10 points off the bench.
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Zack Bryant led UAB (20-13) with 16 points.
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