Lady Toppers Head Home for Two After Finding Ways to Win on the Road This Week
WKU is still holding onto third place by two games over New Mexico State headed into last four games of regular season. Can WKU find ways to win at home against UTEP and NMSU?
“Senior Night” will be Saturday March 1 at 2pm against New Mexico State. Western fans will say farewell to a few seniors, but at the top of the list will be Alexis Mead #3 who has been a major contributor all four years of her career at WKU. According to sports-reference.com, Alexis will end her career ranked in the top 10 in at least 12 career categories, and one of the best all around players in Lady Topper history. So come out in droves on Saturday afternoon to cheer on the seniors, Alexis and the rest of the Ladies as they try to wrap up third place in CUSA regular season.
WKU Battles Back from a 12-9 First Quarter Deficit to Win 57-45 over Sam Houston.
Sam Houston led by as many as seven in the first quarter and was looking to push the score out by more, but WKU fought back to only trail by three at the end of the quarter. The Lady Toppers took their first lead with 5:33 left in the second quarter and extended the lead to four by halftime. The Western defense was solid throughout the game allowing the Lady Bearkats 12 or fewer points per period. WKU’s offense caught fire and outscored the opponent 19-12 in both period two and three, leading 47-36 before starting the fourth frame. Sam Houston would get no closer than five as WKU held on the win by 12.
Josie Gilvin #33 led all players with 23 points and 11 rebounds, her second double-double in consecutive games. Zsofia Telegdy and Alexis Mead added nine points each in the winning effort. Western’s defense held Sam Houston to 35.2% (19-54) from the field, 0% (0-12) from three and forced 18 turnovers.
After Trailing for 38 Minutes of the Game, WKU Outscores La Tech to win 78-73.
Just a few hours before the WKU men staged a seven point comeback win on a last second layup by Senior guard Braxton Bayless #0 to win 64-63, the Lady Toppers staged their own comeback late in the game to win by a handful. The Lady Techsters led by as many as eight in the third quarter, by as many as seven in the other quarters, but La Tech just could not get to a double digit lead at any point. WKU trimmed the lead to two at the end of the third period outscoring the Lady Techsters 20-15. The fourth period saw four ties before WKU took its first lead 68-66 at the 2:14 mark on a Alexis Mead three pointer. Western would extend the lead to six 74-68 with a minute left and hold on to win by five.
La Tech freshman Paris Bradley #23 led all scorers with a career high 29 points and three other players had double figures for the Techsters. Western’s Josie Gilvin #33 had her third straight double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Acacia Hayes #10 and Alexis Mead #3 added 18 each, Destiny Salary #1 had 9, and Mariama Sow #6 added a huge eight points off the bench in the win.
Lady Toppers Looking to Solidify Third Place, Protect Home Court This Week
Player Spotlight of the Week - Destiny Salary #1
Destiny Salary #1 is a 6’ senior guard from Jonesboro, Arkansas. After one year at Tennessee and two years at Ole Miss, Destiny joined the Lady Toppers a few games into the 2023-2024 season and immediately made an impact, scoring 20 in her first game and averaging over 12 points per game in her two seasons at WKU. Destiny is a consistent contributor on offense and defense and a very important player, plus she has the ability to score 20+ on any given night. this year Salary averages 12.0 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.3 steals per contest.
For Western to do well the remainder of the season, Destiny needs to hit close to her averages every night and having a monster game here or there will help too.
Lady Toppers Host UTEP (10-15) on Thursday at 6:30
The Lady Miners leading scorers are Ivane Tensaie averaging 13.1 points and Portia Adams 10.3 points per game. Ndak Mbengue averages a team high 7.3 rebounds per game. The team averages 61.8 points, 36.2 rebounds, 12.9 assists and 17.8 turnovers per game. UTEP comes into the contest in last place in CUSA, so in theory, WKU should take care of business at home and send the Miners back to the West Texas mountains with another loss.
Western Looks for Revenge on NMSU on Senior Night (15-12) on Saturday at 2pm
The Aggies are in fourth and two games behind WKU in the CUSA standings playing catchup with four games left. With Sam Houston and La Tech being two winnable games the last week of the season, an upset in BG is a key first step to moving ahead of Western. New Mexico State averages 65.6 points per game and is led by Molly Kaiser. A 5’8” guard averaging 21.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.9 steals, and 2.5 turnovers per game, Kaiser does it all. Fanta Gassama adds 8.9 rebounds per game. These two are the main players to watch out for, so containing the rest of the team is key for WKU.
Conclusion
The Lady Toppers need to play well against these next two opponents and continue to show they are a contender for the CUSA championship. WKU needs for all players to get their averages, hustle at all times, and play with some grit. Win these two games at home and you lock up third place with a chance to get second at Liberty, so take care of business.
As a second generation WKU Alumni and fan, born and raised in Bowling Green, The Red Barn and Diddle Arena, I want my home team to do well, and unless I am sick or at work, you will find me at Diddle on game days cheering on the Red and White of Dear Old Western.
Attendance has been a little better and more vocal at the last few men’s games, so come on out to Diddle for the last four games of the season, two for the ladies and two for the men. BE LOUD and be proud!
GO TOPS!!! Win CUSA!
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GO TOPS!!!!