ST. THOMAS, Virgin Islands — WKU Hilltopper Basketball went cold in the final minutes of its opener at the U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam, falling to Bowling Green 77-75.
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The Hilltoppers (4-1) led 74-67 with 5:02 to play, but scored just one point and went without a field goal the rest of the way.
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Bowling Green (4-1), the preseason MAC favorite, finished the game on a 10-1 run, capped by Justin Turner's game-winning shot in the lane with 3.8 seconds to go.
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WKU will face Illinois State at 4 p.m. CT Saturday in the consolation bracket of the Paradise Jam.
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"It was nip and tuck most of the game, and then in the second half, we got some separation around the five-minute mark," WKU head coach Rick Stansbury said. "From that point on, we had a couple bad turnovers and went to the free-throw line and missed some free throws.
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"… You've got to be able to execute with toughness the last five minutes of the game. We haven't had a game like that, and we didn't do a great job of finishing some plays and making some free throws."
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WKU trailed by 14 in the first half, but used a 20-1 run to power in front 32-27 with 4:36 left in the frame.
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Bowling Green trimmed that advantage to 40-39 by halftime, and the second half was a back-and-forth battle throughout.
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The Hilltoppers were able to build some separation when redshirt junior forward Carson Williams' basket made it 74-67 with 5:02 left, but their only point the rest of the way was a single free throw by junior guard Taveion Hollingsworth with 41 seconds remaining.
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WKU went 3-for-8 from the free-throw line in the second half, offsetting a 53.6 percent shooting display from the field after the break. The Tops shot 48.1 percent from the floor overall.
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Sophomore center Charles Bassey paced WKU with 19 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks.
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Hollingsworth finished with 19 points, six rebounds and three assists, while Williams tallied 14 points and five rebounds. Redshirt senior guard/forward Jared Savage added 12 points and five boards.
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Turner paced Bowling Green with 27 points, while Dylan Frye scored 19 points with five made 3-pointers.
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WKU's next opponent, Illinois State, had a 10-point lead in the closing minutes Friday against Cincinnati before falling 66-65.
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"You go to these tournaments and you lose the first night, you have to find a way to get back up and win that next one and go 2-1," Stansbury said.
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