GAME INFO
- FIU (11-11, 4-7Â CUSA) at WKU (12-11, 5-7 CUSA)
- Saturday, Feb. 7 | 2:00 p.m. CT | E.A. Diddle Arena | Bowling Green, Ky.
- Watch:Â ESPN+Â (PxP: Tyler Eaton | Analyst: Craig McCormick)
- Listen: The Varsity Network (PxP: Randy Lee | Analyst: Hal Schmitt)
- Live Stats: Sidearm | StatBroadcast
- Social: @WKUBasketball | @WKUSports
- Game Notes:Â WKUÂ |Â FIU
AT THE GAME
- Purchase tickets to Saturday's game against FIUÂ HERE.
- The ticket booths at E.A. Diddle Arena will be open prior to doors opening. Doors will open 90 minutes prior to tipoff for the public.
- Saturday is Community Day. Join us for a game celebrating who makes Bowling Green and Warren County great.
- Schedule cards, posters and roster cards will be available at the marketing table near the entrance while supplies last.
- WKU Athletics offers a kids corner in Diddle Arena, an area for kids to enjoy. This area includes bean bag tic-tac-toe, inflatable axe throwing and more. The kids corner is located on the upstairs concourse by the concessions stand.
- After the game, stick around for postgame fist bumps from the WKU Hilltopper Basketball team and listen to the live postgame interview with Mahurin Family Foundation Head Coach Hank Plona.Â
- The full 2025-26 WKU Hilltopper Basketball promotional schedule can be found HERE.
- Want to make your gameday special? Check out our Hilltopper Highlights premium fan experiences for basketball season, including videoboard messages, Big Red visits, fan tunnels and more! Check out our Hilltopper Highlights HERE. Purchase WKU Hilltopper Basketball experiences HERE.
- For the full WKU Basketball Gameday Information page, click HERE.
- For the full WKU Basketball Winter Sports Yearbook, click HERE.
- For the full WKU Hilltopper Basketball Digital Gameday Guide, click HERE.Â
ABOUTÂ THEÂ TOPS
- WKU Hilltopper Basketball dropped a 71-66 decision to Jax State on Thursday night inside E.A. Diddle Arena. Despite an early shooting drought, the Hilltoppers battled back to take several second-half leads before the Gamecocks used a late surge at the free throw line to pull away. Ryan Myers came off the bench to score a team-high 20 points, while LJ Hackman added a Division I career-best 17 points and Armelo Boone and Grant Newell chipped in 11 and 10, respectively. WKU dropped to 12-11 overall and 5-7 in Conference USA play with the loss.
- WKU is among the top rebounding teams in the country, ranking top-20 nationally with 40.7 rebounds per game and top-10 nationally with 14.1 offensive boards per outing. The Hilltoppers have topped 40 rebounds in 14 contests this season, including seven CUSA games. In league play, WKU paces CUSA with 14.8 offensive rebounds per game.
- Depth has been a major strength for WKU this season, with the Hilltoppers averaging 32.8 bench points per game to rank first in CUSA and top-25 nationally. The WKU reserves have delivered a consistent scoring spark, topping 40 bench points five times, highlighted by 56 against Bethel, 54 against Evansville and 46 in both the Tennessee Tech and Campbellsville contests. The Hilltoppers have posted over 30 bench points in seven of their last nine outings, totaling 34 at New Mexico State, 37 at UTEP, 33 against Missouri State, 32 in the first meeting against Kennesaw State, 35 in the second meeting at Kennesaw State, 38 at Middle Tennessee and 31 at home against Jax State.
- WKU has been forced to navigate a difficult stretch of injuries to key contributors this season, reshaping its rotation in both the frontcourt and backcourt. Graduate forward Bryant Selebangue suffered a torn Achilles against Marshall on Dec. 10 and is out for the season, while junior forward Louie Semona has been sidelined with a back injury since the Dec. 19 game against Tulsa. Graduate guard Terrion Murdix missed eight games after sustaining a knee injury on Nov. 27 against South Florida before returning to action on Jan. 8 at New Mexico State. On the perimeter, redshirt sophomore guard Teagan Moore was injured in the final minute of the Liberty game on Jan. 21 and subsequently missed the last four games. Freshman guard Armelo Boone injured his ankle in practice following the Liberty game, sat out two games against Sam Houston and Kennesaw State and returned to action in last Saturday's win at Middle Tennessee.
- Redshirt sophomore guard Teagan Moore leads the Hilltoppers with 17.2 points while also grabbing 5.9 rebounds per game. He has scored in double figures in 16 of 19 games played, reaching at least 15 points in 15 of those outings and producing six 20-point performances. In Moore's most recent appearance, he paced WKU with 19 points against Liberty, going 5-of-8 from the field and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. Moore has missed the last four games due to a head injury and is questionable for Saturday's game against FIU.
- Redshirt freshman guard Armelo Boone returned to action on Saturday at Middle Tennessee after missing two games at Sam Houston and Kennesaw State with an ankle injury. In 24 minutes, he provided a major boost off the bench with 12 points on 5-of-12 shooting, including 2-of-4 from deep, along with five rebounds, a block and a steal as WKU outscored the Blue Raiders by 19 when he was on the floor. Before his exit in Thursday's game against Jax State, Boone recorded 11 points on 5-of-12 from the floor to go along with three rebounds and three assists across 26 minutes. Boone has emerged as one of the league's top newcomers, tying for a conference-best four CUSA Freshman of the Week honors while averaging 11.8 points, a team-best 6.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals. The Lexington, Kentucky, native has recorded three double-doubles this season — 16 points and 12 boards against Tulsa, 16 points and 13 rebounds at Sam Houston and 13 points and 13 rebounds against Liberty — to become the first WKU freshman with multiple double-doubles in a season since Charles Bassey in 2018-19.
- Graduate forward Blaise Keita has recently become a steady force in the paint for WKU, grabbing 29 rebounds over his last three games — the best three-game stretch of his Division I career. Against Middle Tennessee, Keita dominated the boards with a career-high 14 rebounds while adding a season-high seven points, two steals and a block in a career-best 29 minutes, finishing with a game-high plus-20 plus-minus.
QUOTABLE
- "Just a very tough game, just a strange game. Obviously, a lot of things that we can do better. I thought we competed and played hard. I thought our intent was correct, but a lot of things to improve on. Luckily, we play again on Saturday, so a short time to do it and get another opportunity." — Mahurin Family Foundation Head Coach Hank Plona, on the loss to Jax State and ahead of playing FIU on Saturday.
SERIES INFORMATION
- Saturday's matchup will be the 56th all-time meeting between WKU and FIU. The programs have met at least once every season since 1999 as conference opponents, with the lone exception of the 2014 campaign.
- WKU leads the all-time series 41-14, including a 21-4 record against the Panthers inside E.A. Diddle Arena. FIU has had the upper hand of late, winning three of the last five meetings and taking two of three contests last season, capped by a 64-61 victory over the Hilltoppers in the Conference USA Tournament.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
- FIU enters Saturday's game with an 11-11 overall record and a 4-7 mark in Conference USA play. The Panthers are coming off an 88-84 overtime win over Middle Tennessee on Wednesday night in Murfreesboro, Tenn.
- FIU is led by head coach Jeremy Ballard, who is in his eighth season. He owns a 109-135 career record with the Panthers.
How to follow WKU Hilltopper Basketball: For complete information on WKU Hilltopper Basketball, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program via social media @WKUBasketball on Instagram and X.Â
