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Saturday's win marks the fourth straight for WKU and improves the Tops' record to 7-3 overall with a 6-1 mark at home in Diddle Arena. WKU has now secured victory in seven of its last eight matchups this season.
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Four Hilltoppers charted in double figures scoring in the win over the Racers, with McHenry leading the offensive charge for WKU with the game-high point total of 29 along with five rebounds, two steals, two blocks and an assist. Tyrone Marshall Jr. posted a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double with two steals and an assist, while Babacar Faye finished with 17 points and nine rebounds along with two steals, one block and an assist. Khristian Lander rounded out the Tops to reach double digits scoring, charting 12 points with two rebounds and an assist.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
Braxton Bayless knocked down a fadeaway jumper from the free throw line for WKU's first points of the day. Out of a timeout, McHenry found a cutting Faye for the jam to give WKU a 6-2 lead with 17:48 left in the first. The Racers took their first lead with a three in front of the Hilltopper bench to go ahead, 12-10, at the 15:24 mark of the first.
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WKU would continue a scoreless skid for 7:01, allowing Murray State to take a 12-point lead before snapping the drought with a Faye tip-in with 9:30 remaining in the half. Faye would cut the margin down to single digits with a pair of made free throws to bring the count to 22-14 with 9:03 until the break.Â
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Trailing by 10, McHenry was fouled on a three-point attempt and converted on all-three free throws to cut the deficit to seven, 26-19, with 6:02 left in the half. WKU connected on its next three field goals, but the Racers held a 10-point, 35-25 lead with three minutes to play as the teams exchanged buckets. With 2:25 until the break, Enoch Kalambay connected on a pair from the stripe to cut the deficit to eight. The Hilltoppers then forced the sixth Racer turnover and Jalen Jackson converted on the other end with a contested layup, cutting the Hilltopper deficit to four, 37-33, with 57.4 left in the first period.Â
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The Racers would connect on the other end and the teams went into the break with WKU trailing, 39-33.Â
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The Hilltoppers struggled shooting in the first half, charting just .314% from the floor with a 0-of-10 clip from beyond the arc heading into halftime. Despite the poor shooting, WKU managed 11-of-12 from the charity stripe.
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The second half saw WKU improve its shooting early, as McHenry connected on the team's first three of the day at the 19:18 mark of the second period. Faye then secured a steal and converted on the other end to make it a one possession game, 42-39.
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Out of an inbounds pass, McHenry nailed another triple in front of the Hilltiopper bench, tying things at 42-all with 17:08 left to play. In transition, Bayless found a trailing Marshall Jr. for WKU's third three of the half to give the team a 45-42 lead and shift momentum back in the Tops' favor. This marked the Tops' first lead since leading 10-9 early in the first, forcing the Racers into a timeout with 15:54 left in the game.
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A 15-0 scoring run for WKU combined with a 5:18 scoreless drought for Murray State allowed the Tops to take a seven-point, 49-42 lead with 14:50 left in regulation. The Racers followed by connecting on a field goal to cut the WKU lead down to five. WKU was first to break 50 with a runner from Marshall Jr. to put the Tops ahead, 51-47, nearing the under-12 break.
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With WKU trailing by two, Kalambay got fouled on his way up and connected on both foul shots for the fourth tie of the game, this time 55-all, with 9:55 to play. A quick 5-0 jolt by the Racers forced the Tops into a timeout trailing, 60-55, with 8:42 left. The Racers added three more as WKU's scoring drought extended to 3:29 before Marshall Jr. connected on a three from the wing to make it a five-point game with 5:53 to play.Â
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Kalambay faked out a defender on the next possession and found a wide-open McHenry in the corner who buried the three, making it a two point, 63-61 game. Murray State added two more and the two offenses stalled as WKU went on a 3:13 scoreless drought. A baseline floater by McHenry cut the margin to two, 65-63, with 1:43 to play. The Racers then turned the ball over and McHenry drove to the rack and connected, evening things at 65-all with 1:02 remaining in regulation.
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The Racers connected on a pair of foul shots before McHenry followed his own miss on the other end, tying the game for the sixth time, 67-all, with 35 seconds left. After a defensive stand, Jackson found Marshall Jr. at the buzzer but it was off the mark. The teams ended regulation deadlocked at 67-67.
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Entering overtime, McHenry scored the first points of the period to give WKU a 69-67 lead with 4:19 left.​ The Racers tied the game again before Lander was fouled on the other end and converted both to push WKU over 70, now leading 71-69. Murray State scored the next five, taking a 74-71 lead before Lander connected on a jumper with 1:15 left to bring the count to 74-73, WKU trailing by one.Â
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The Tops strapped on defense with Kalambay grabbing the defensive board. On the other end, McHenry pulled up on a step-back three and connected in the face of a Racer defender to reclaim a lead for the Tops, 76-74, with 38 seconds left in overtime.Â
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Moments later, WKU forced a Murray State turnover and secured possession with 16.4 seconds to play in OT. McHenry was fouled with 15.6 left and converted both to bring the count to 78-74 in favor of the Hilltoppers.Â
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The Racers scored with nine seconds left and Bayless was fouled on the inbounds, hitting one-of-two at the stripe to push the WKU lead to three, 79-76. The Racers then turned the ball over on the other end again before a foul on Lander on the WKU inbound sent him to the stripe for a pair. Lander sunk both, pushing the WKU lead to 81-76 with 2.9 left in the overtime period.Â
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A final Racer heave would be off the mark and WKU secured its 100th all-time win over Murray State, 81-76, to improve to 7-3 on the year.
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NOTABLES
- WKU used the lineup of Bayless, McHenry, Lander, Faye and Marshall Jr. for the third consecutive game. The group is now 3-0 together and 2-0 at home.
- WKU has now won its 100th all-time game in the historic rivalry series with Murray State. The Hilltoppers now hold a 100-54 edge over the Racers including a 60-13 mark at home.
- With the 100th victory over Murray State, WKU has now secured 100 wins against three programs in its storied history. EKU and Middle Tennessee round out the list.
- The Hilltoppers connected on 21-of-25 at the free-throw line for an .840% clip compared to Murray State's .731%.
- Don McHenry led the Tops in scoring, charting 29 points on 9-for-23 shooting from the field. The senior added five rebounds and two steals in 33 minutes of action.
- McHenry's 29-point performance was one-point shy of tying his career-best; the senior guard previously posted 30 points in a win over Wright State on the road last season.
- Tyrone Marshall Jr. notched a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double and was one of four Hilltoppers to record two steals.
- Enoch Kalambay led the team with two assists and was a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe in 25 minutes of action.Â
- WKU scored 40 of its 81 points in the paint. Murray State managed just 30.
- WKU's seven assists are tied for the fewest all season. The last time WKU won while dishing out seven or fewer assists was on March 2, 2023 in a win over UTEP.
- After going 0-for-10 from beyond the arc in the first half, WKU managed 6-of-15 in the second half and overtime period. McHenry led the team from deep connecting on 4-of-10.Â
"It feels like our guys did an incredible job of persevering through a lot of ups and downs throughout that game," head coach Hank Plona said. "I thought that the togetherness that we showed on both ends of the floor in a very, very high-pressure situation was something that you want to see from a veteran team, and it was great to see that. I think we've done a good job in the last three games pulling away in the second half, but Murray is an elite-level team, so you don't just pull away on those. Ultimately, we were able to make some plays in some tough situations on both ends of the floor and I couldn't be prouder of the guys to pull out this win."
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"I love our WKU fans," Tyrone Marshall Jr. said. "Once they get into it, I'm definitely locked in because I want to win for them – for the crowd, for the fans, for the kids that come out here and support us. So, us getting a big win in front of them, that makes my day."
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NEXT UP
WKU continues its non-conference slate with its first-ever meeting against Seattle on Tuesday, Dec. 17 in Diddle Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT with ESPN+ set to broadcast the event live.
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Follow the team on social media (@wkubasketball) and visit wkusports.com for the latest news and updates on all things Hilltopper Basketball as the team continues its 2024-25 campaign.
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