| Game 20 at FIU Thursday, January 26 | 6 p.m. CT | Miami, Fla. Season presented by Med Center Health |
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| Records | WKU (11-9, 3-6 C-USA) • FIU (9-11, 3-6 C-USA) | ||||
| Listen | Hilltopper Sports Network (WKLX 100.7 FM flagship); C-USA.tv Audio; Varsity Network Randy Lee (pxp) | Hal Schmitt (analysis) |
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| Watch | ESPN+ AJ Ricketts (pxp) | Patrick Murray (analysis) |
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| Live Stats | FIU Stats | ||||
| Tickets | FIU Tickets | ||||
| Game Notes | WKU Game Notes | ||||
| Most Recent Media | Interim HC Phil Cunningham Postgame Media | Hamilton/Rawls Postgame Media | ||||
| Social Media | @WKUBasketball  | @WKUBasketball  | Facebook  | YouTube  |
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BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — WKU Hilltopper Basketball starts a two-game road swing at FIU on Thursday night. The 6 p.m. CT game will stream on ESPN+. In a 20-game conference season, FIU is the first repeat opponent for the Tops.
The Hilltoppers are looking to snap a three-game slide and pick up their third league road win. WKU most recently dropped one to Charlotte on Saturday, 75-71. The FIU Panthers won at UTSA on the same day, 77-72.
WKU has a 39-10 edge in the all-time series. The Hilltoppers lead the series in Miami as well 14-6. WKU is 7-3 all-time against the Panthers in the Rick Stansbury era.
WKU VS. FIU SERIES BREAKDOWN
Overall History: WKU leads 39-10
Series Record in Miami: WKU leads 14-6
Last Meeting: WKU 70, FIU 59 | January 14, 2023 | Bowling Green, Ky.
WKU Hilltopper Basketball returned home for the first time in nine days and picked up its third league win, first inside E.A. Diddle Arena this year, on Saturday night with a 70-59 victory over FIU.
For the just the third time this season, WKU's opponent scored first. The Hilltoppers quickly responded with a back-and-forth game.
WKU used a 12-4 run between the eight-minute mark and the four-minute mark to take and extend its lead to 30-26. The Hilltoppers scored the final five points of the half, making the score 35-29 headed into halftime.
Midway through the second half, the Panthers scored 12 straight between 15:36 to 11:08 to take its only second half lead at 46-42. The run was stopped by a 3-pointer from Jairus Hamilton.
As Diddle Arena's energy intensified, Hamilton's 3 sparked a WKU 16-4 run that spanned over five minutes. It took the score from 46-42 Panthers to 58-50 Tops in a matter of minutes.
The Hilltoppers kept their foot on the gas, closing the entire half on a 12-5 run, allowing FIU to score only two field goals in the final four minutes of the game.
WKU stepped up its defense in guarding the 3-point line, holding the Panthers to a 26.1% clip from beyond the arc. The Hilltoppers outrebounded FIU 39-33 and the bench outscored FIU's 21-4.
The Hilltoppers outscored the Panthers in both halves, the first time WKU has done that all conference play.
Four Tops were in double-figure scoring on Saturday night. Hamilton had 12 points and seven rebounds; Luke Frampton had 10 with four rebounds, three assists; Dayvion McKnight had the team-high 14 points with four assists and five boards; and Jordan Rawls had 11 on the board.
Junior Khristian Lander earned his first start as Emmanuel Akot was out due to a head injury. Lander scored eight points, including two crucial 3's near the start of the game.
Tyrone Marshall was also a force to be reckoned with on defense, pulled down six boards and blocking four shots.
WKU held the conference's second-leading scorer Denver Jones to well-below his average as he scored just nine points. Arturo Dean led the Panthers with 18 points and nine boards.
TOP STORYLINES
- Over the last 12 games, Dayvion McKnight is averaging 20.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game while shooting 46.4% (90-194) from the field and 84.1% (53-63) from the charity stripe. He's scored 25 points or more in 5 of those 12 games. He's shooting 47.6% (10-21) from 3 in conference play.
- In Saturday night's game against Charlotte, Luke Frampton suffered a season-ending ACL injury to his right knee less than three minutes into the game. He will undergo surgery next week. Frampton tore his left ACL just before beginning his freshman season at Davidson.
- Head coach Rick Stansbury has missed the last nine games, all in conference play, due to health issues. Associate head coach Phil Cunningham stepped in the interim as he did before in 2021.
- WKU logged just three turnovers against Charlotte on Jan. 21, marking the second time in program history - since at least 1971-72 - to notch three turnovers or fewer.
- As of Wednesday, Jamarion Sharp leads the country in total blocks (81) and blocks per game (4.3).
- In just 50 games as a Hilltopper, Jamarion Sharp broke the program record for blocks in a career, previously held by Jeremy Evans.
- Jamarion Sharp's 81 blocks are more than what 75% of Division I programs have logged as a team. His average of 4.3 blocks/game is more than what 83% of Division I teams are averaging.
- In the last two seasons, Dayvion McKnight has started in all 52 of WKU's contests, scoring at least 10 points in 45 of those.
MED CENTER HEALTH
The 2022-23 WKU Basketball season is proudly presented by Med Center Health. Med Center Health has served Southcentral Kentucky for more than 90 years, and its system of care includes six acute care hospitals, a comprehensive network of physician practices and clinics, and hundreds of area physicians offering care in dozens of specialties. From emergency treatment to preventative care, Med Center Health is dedicated to improving the quality of life in the communities it serves. Learn more at medcenterhealth.org.
