Hilltopper Hysteria to Take Place Thursday, October 18

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — WKU's annual tip-off event for Hilltopper and Lady Topper Basketball, Hilltopper Hysteria, will take place Thursday, Oct. 18, beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Parking and admission are free for the event in E.A. Diddle Arena, which features two new state-of-the-art, high-definition video boards and a brand-new sound system this year.

Complete Nutrition and Hilltop Club are associate sponsors of Hilltopper Hysteria.

Hilltopper Hysteria will once again be a ticketed event this season, although it remains free admission. Season ticket holders for men's basketball will have first priority to ensure their season ticket seat locations for Hysteria, but must do so by 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 5.

After that, women's basketball season ticket holders will have priority to secure remaining seats for Hysteria from Monday, Oct 8 through Wednesday, Oct. 10. Starting at 8 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 11 through the time of the event, seats will be available to the general public.

To reserve your season ticket seats, call 1-800-5-BIGRED, text your name to 1-800-524-4733 or email tickets@wku.edu.

The festivities will begin at 6:30 p.m. with introductions of the Lady Topper Basketball program and a women's scrimmage.

Men's basketball introductions are slated for 7 p.m. Both squads will then participate in interactive shooting contests and basketball-related challenges with fans and students, with a scrimmage by the Hilltoppers to follow. An autograph session on the court will conclude the evening.

This year, WKU Basketball is teaming up with Lady Topper Volleyball to help raise money for a very special teammate. In August 2012 through the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, WKU Volleyball adopted Harlie Bryant – an energetic 6-year-old who had just been diagnosed with Pilocytic Astrocytoma, a rare form of brain cancer. Now in her seventh season with the Red and White, Harlie has rarely missed a home match with her squad.

Every year, WKU Volleyball dedicates a home match as Hope 4 Harlie/Friends of Jaclyn night with free admission while collecting donations for the two organizations. With this year's match set for Friday, Oct. 19, it falls in the middle of Hilltopper Hysteria week and WKU Athletics would like to make it a family effort to help raise money for our teammate.

Donations for the Hope 4 Harlie/Friends of Jaclyn fundraiser will be collected at Hilltopper Hysteria and the volleyball match the following night, but are also now being accepted online at the following link: https://goto.ps/Hope4Harlie18

Hilltopper Basketball went 27-11 in 2017-18, their most wins in 10 seasons and the most in the state of Kentucky last year, while advancing to the semifinals of the NIT for the first time since 1954. WKU ranks third in NCAA history in regular-season league titles (42), seventh in 20-win seasons (44), eighth in all-time winning percentage (.661) and 17th in all-time wins (1,775).

Lady Topper Basketball captured its second straight C-USA Tournament crown and made its fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last six seasons in 2017-18, finishing with a 24-9 record. Entering the 2018-19 campaign, WKU sits just 16 wins shy of becoming the 10th team in NCAA women's basketball history with 1,000 total victories and will welcome new head coach Greg Collins, formerly an assistant with the program for the last six seasons, for his first year at the helm of the program.

Season tickets are now available for Hilltopper and Lady Topper Basketball! Season tickets start as low as $155 each for the men and $40 for the women. Help us #SellOutDiddle as limited tickets remain for this men's basketball season. Family plan tickets are available for both men's and women's basketball when purchased in groups of four or more. For more information, call 1-800-5-BIGRED or visit WKUTickets.com.

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Players Mentioned

Harlie Bryant