MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – WKU men's basketball fell on the road at Middle Tennessee, 74-72, on Saturday night at Murphy Center Complex. WKU drops to 19-8 overall for the 2023-24 season and 8-5 in Conference USA league play with the loss.Â
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Saturday saw a tightly contested battle between the historic rivals as WKU and MTSU met for the 146th time. The Hilltoppers now hold a 99-47 advantage all-time facing the Blue Raiders, and a 39-30 record playing on the road in Murfreesboro.Â
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The Tops struggled offensively entering the game, falling behind 10-1 in the first four minutes of play. Teagan Moore connected on a second-chance opportunity in the paint to give WKU its first field goal of the game at the 15:36 mark of the first.
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MTSU led by as many as 12, 22-10, with 10:53 remaining in the half. A pair of successful trips at the charity stripe by Brandon Newman and Rodney Howard and a turnaround jumper by Enoch Kalambay would cut the Tops' deficit to seven, 22-15, with 9:27 to play in the half.Â
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A made three-pointer by Newman later cut the Blue Raider lead to four, 26-22, with just over seven minutes remaining in the first. A Dontaie Allen three with 4:59 to go until the half brought the count to 29-27, before Don McHenry hit from range off a fastbreak to connect on the junior's first points of the night and even the count for the Tops, 34-34.Â
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A pair of free throws by Kalambay gave WKU its first lead of the night, 36-34, entering halftime.Â
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Returning for the second half, a second-chance layup in the paint by Babacar Faye gave the Hilltoppers a four-point lead, the team's largest of the night, 30 seconds into the half. MTSU reclaimed a two-point lead two minutes later before a second-chance layup by Allen once again evened the count at 44-apiece.Â
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The Blue Raiders outscored the Hilltoppers 18-7 throughout the next seven minutes to take a 62-51 lead halfway through the second. A pair of layups by Howard cut the margin to seven, 64-57, with 8:41 to play, then a three-pointer by Tyrone Marshall Jr. off a fast break brought the count to 66-62 with 5:43 left in regulation.Â
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McHenry accounted for three straight buckets to cut the MTSU lead to two, 72-70, with 3:07 to play, before Faye connected on a pair at the stripe a minute later to tie the game at 72-72. The Blue Raiders connected on the backend of two shots at the line to take a one-point lead with 1:48 remaining in regulation.Â
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Despite two possessions in the final 90 seconds of play, the Hilltoppers were unable to connect on offense as Middle Tennessee staved off WKU's attempts at a go-ahead bucket. The Blue Raiders connected on a free throw with two seconds remaining and, following an errant in-bound pass by the Tops, secured the 74-72 win over WKU.
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Five Hilltoppers charted double-digit point totals on Saturday. Newman led the Hilltoppers in scoring with 14 points off 3-for-8 shooting and a 7-of-7 mark from the free throw line.
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Howard led in rebounds with seven while posting 11 points, three assists and five blocks. Allen finished with 11 points, while McHenry and Faye rounded out the Tops in double figures with 11 and 10 points respectively.
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Hilltopper Basketball returns to Diddle Arena next Wednesday, Feb. 28 for its final home game of the season hosting Louisiana Tech. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. CT with ESPN+ set to broadcast.
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Follow the team on social media (@wkubasketball) for the latest news and updates on all things Hilltopper Basketball. Visit wkusports.com for more information.
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