WKU Basketball: Grading the Tops' 73-64 Win Over Old Dominion

WKU went ice cold in the second half but gutted out a huge win to take over second place in the C-USA East Division.

Guts. Heart. Determination.

Western Kentucky Basketball’s 7-0 record in seven days has been nothing short of remarkable. Multiple injury threats, a six man rotation, and road games and quality opponents aplenty have not stopped the Tops.

Give them all credit for the guts that it’s taken to get right and march straight into the potential two seed in the division. Western Kentucky was tied for sixth in the division 17 days ago. Now, they’re positioning themselves as one of the (at worst) six teams that could legitimately compete for a Conference USA Championship. Certainly, if WKU clinches a bye and continues its hot streak through to Frisco, Conference USA better watch out.

In this one, WKU started it out with an ominous turnover, allowing ODU to take an early 2-0. But WKU would explode for 12 in a row and would lead throughout, allowing ODU to cut it to six at one point. But WKU would tighten up and finish the game, ultimately winning 73-64.

But within that, the Tops fought for everything. First it was Jamarion Sharp getting in foul trouble and ultimately fouling out with 6:31 remaining. But before he fouled out, Jairus Hamilton went down with an apparent knee injury (possibly a strained patellar tendon according to doctors’ in-game evaluation) with 3:52 remaining in the first half. Jairus would not return to the game.

To answer some of the immediate questions about Jairus, a strained patellar tendon could mean anything from pain meds and sucking it up against Middle Tennessee to possibly being out multiple weeks. And if it ever ruptures, Jairus would be done for the year. But if it’s just a strain, he should probably return at some point if the initial evaluation is correct and there’s no further damage.

On a side note, many have asked about Jaylen Butz. When asked about Butz, Stansbury said Butz had “a foot problem”.

But as far as the effort on the court, the players that played have shown the most guts that we may have seen from a WKU team in a long time.

Rick Stansbury has his short rotation playing out of their minds, and he and his staff deserve credit for (so far) keeping everybody pretty healthy and getting the most out of six (or if necessary seven) players.

So in a happy version of game grades, let’s grade out the Tops on an individual and team basis.

Grading the Keys to Victory

Pretend it’s the District Championship in High School: A+

The crowd was back at Diddle, and it felt like a serious game. WKU came out ready to play, jumping on ODU early. I’m not sure how Rick Stansbury handled the psychology portion of the schedule, but I know Jeff Brohm and others have always looked at the end of the season as a state championship run. Most guys in Division I programs have been on a really good team in high school, probably because they were the best player on their team. Well, whatever psychology Rick Stansbury has been using has worked. Despite WKU having foul trouble, a first half injury, and going ice cold in the last ten minutes of the game, WKU still won a game against a good opponent by nine points. It didn’t matter what came up. The Tops were ready for it and really wanted this one.

Don’t Expect Jeff Jones to Make the Same Mistakes: A+

I’m not sure exactly how to particularly grade this key, because it’s totally arbitrary. However, WKU found ways to adjust some things from last game. Kalu Ezikpe had one of his better games the first go around, while this game was more about his rebounding than his scoring. Austin Trice, ODU’s leading scorer and rebounder, only had seven points and five rebounds on nine shots. He did leave the game with injury, so we wish him well. C.J. Keyser had 19 points, including five threes last time. This time, he had one three and 11 points on 14 shots. WKU also forced ODU to go zone because they couldn’t stop the Tops in man-to-man, and WKU actually outrebounded a superior rebounding team because of it. ODU actually went 3-2 zone after Jamarion Sharp was out, a really interesting move that actually made sense. But they could not rebound the basketball in that particular defense.

Pound It: B

Ehh not full marks on this one, but a solid passing grade. WKU took a shade over half of its shots from deep. But Western did also take 22 free throws, including missing some front ends of one-and-ones. Western only shot 39.3% from the floor, something they haven’t done much all season. They certainly haven’t won shooting like that. It was actually nice to have a bad offensive game and handle the opponent fairly easily whole time. If WKU hadn’t gone truly ice cold in the last half of the second half, this game would have been a 25+ point affair. WKU was up 20 in the second half, only to melt it down simply from not being able to remotely score. But it wasn’t their fault. They probably took a few bad shots that could’ve been erased with better decision making, but this issue was not a symptom of a disease but more of a blip on the radar. Once again, Western played about as bad as it could in some way and still won easily. This time it was shooting. During this seven game run, there have been several games where WKU just didn’t play well and found a way to win. It’s nice to see yet another way WKU can win: Defense and rebounding.

Rebound Better: A+

With WKU having been manhandled on the boards lately, coming out against ODU and winning the rebounding battle outright and coming up with 15 offensive boards is just astounding. ODU is one of the better rebounding teams in the conference, and Austin Trice has been averaging a double-double in conference games. He didn’t come close in either category, partly because of injury. But Western simply found another way to win, and this time, just as I had predicted, Western’s legs were tired and they needed a little something different to win the game on tired legs. If WKU can start rebounding like they did Saturday, that just adds another layer of protection from loss. WKU is so efficient already, but if WKU can pretty much guarantee a win with rebounding, that is now four or five ways WKU can beat an opponent: Talent, rebounding, defense, offensive efficiency, and limiting turnovers are some good examples. Very few teams can win in so many different ways.

No Bad Games: A-

In terms of players not playing well, for the most part, everyone that got to play starred in a very important role. Even Jairus Hamilton, who went out because of injury, was good while he was in there. In only 14 minutes, he produced seven points. Besides him, everyone had at least a decent game. Perhaps Cam Justice and Jamarion Sharp could be counterarguments against this claim, but Cam Justice ultimately scored 13 points on eight shots from the field while drawing a ton of fouls. Jamarion Sharp fouled out and played less than half of the game, but he nearly got a double-double and had four blocks. Isaiah Cozart may not have produced much on the stat sheet, but he stepped up and probably made close to double digit points’ worth of intangible plays. His offensive rebound late in the fourth quarter was absolutely massive. He was tipping balls, making life difficult defensively, and banging around in the paint against a physical club. McKnight, Anderson, and Frampton all had good to great games. So good job on being really good, but with two guys going down or being out for particular reasons, this great gets dinged just a little bit..

Prediction Accuracy: B

I did think this would be a little more of a game than it was, simply because WKU must be completely exhausted from playing not only five games in ten days but actually 7 in 17. There has been no room to breathe, and they were clearly hanging on by fumes energy wise. Jairus Hamilton would not have a presumed patellar tendon strain without severe stress on his body. But in addition to the difficulty, ODU’s coach is just really good and I thought he could keep this game close. It turns out, WKU is just too good. But I did think that this game would be more defensive, and that WKU may not shoot as well as they normally do. This is the exact concern about the lack of depth, though. At the end of a demanding run, WKU was far and away its worst shooting effort in conference play. It’s just getting difficult with the depth issues.

Individual Game Grades

Dayvion McKnight: A+

Dayvion McKnight missed a total of four minutes of action this week, playing three games and playing in this one wire-to-wire. In this game, not only did he score (23) but he also rebounded. He did not have his normal assists, but he also only turned it over twice, something that is much less than his average. And on top of that, he only committed one foul despite all of that activity. McKnight is working on putting himself atop the list of C-USA best players. With his second Player of the Week, McKnight is only the third player in C-USA with multiple such awards, behind only Jordan Walker (3 times POTW)

Camron Justice: B

Cam Justice wasn’t great from the field, only going 2-of-8. But he made up for it by getting to the bucket, shooting ten free throws, including missing a front end of a one-and-one. He also contributed in all areas and also only committed two turnovers. Justice may not have had his prettiest night, but drawing nearly half of the free throws for the Tops really made a huge difference.

Luke Frampton: B+

Luke also may not have had the most flashy numbers, only making 3-of-11 from the floor. However, he drew multiple charges and contributed in all areas, including 11 points and six rebounds. WKU’s rebounding is always much better when Luke is really getting on the glass. In this case, he was making hustle play after hustle play. That kind of effort can only be positive.

Jairus Hamilton: B+

For the time he was given, Jairus was a heck of a player. Unfortunately a player that only played 14 minutes is probably not somebody that should get an over-the-top passing grade, but Jairus did some good things in the moments he was in the game, and he was on pace to probably push 20 points if given his full playing time. Unfortunately his tendonitis got the best of him, and he rode the pine the rest of the half and game.

Jamarion Sharp: B

Jamarion Sharp is just an incredible ball player. At times, he can seem to be the most silent 7’5” player you’ve ever seen. Then he’ll explode out of nowhere. In this case, Jamarion got nearly a double-double (eight points, 10 rebounds) and four blocks playing 19 minutes. The only drawback to this game was his five fouls. Three were pretty decent, but two sent the WKU fans into an uproar. Jamarion still has to learn to control himself if he’s going to make the next step in his development. Flailing after every ball is not good basketball. There are times he could go straight up. He could back off. He could swat judiciously. But if he could just find a way to give him some equity later in the game, he could be extremely aggressive with three or less fouls heading in to final stretches of games.

Josh Anderson: B

A really good game from Josh in terms of points (11) and rebounds (nine), Josh battled from trying to make too much happen. Taking 13 shots, Anderson needed a little too much in order to get his points on this occasion. It’s still a nice game, and the near double-double is huge. If guys like Josh Anderson and Luke Frampton can pull down more than their average in rebounds, WKU would have yet another layer of protection.

Isaiah Cozart: A-

Cozart is a bit of a mystery for many fans. Why not play him? Very few players come off the bench shooting 80 percent from the field. But Cozart does. He produces. He makes an impact. In this case, he really didn’t produce, but he was the team MVT of the game, and I would say five or six plays stood out as plays that WKU benefitted from having Cozart on the floor. He absolutely made it tough in the post, he rebounded or tried to rebound, and what I love about Cozart is on every rebound, he’s finding someone to put a butt on and boxing out. He may not even get the rebound, but his man is not getting it, either.

Team Grades

Effort: A+

Without question, this team is playing harder than it has all season. There are still lulls, which can be maddening, but the lulls are getting shorter and the length of intensity is getting longer. WKU is really coming after three point shooters, they’re coming after rebounds (even if they sometimes don’t get it), and they’re diving on the floor and going to toe-to-toe with the opponent in the effort department.

Cohesion: A

There’s no question this band of six with some occasional assistance is playing together and for each other. There’s no other way a team sitting at 2-6 could have just magically reeled off seven straight. There’s not much more of a juxtaposition than losing five straight and immediately winning at least seven in a row. But this team is firing on all cylinders, and as I’m saying multiple times in this article, the Tops are getting to a point that a special team is going to have to beat them to end their season. Whoever it is, whether it’s in C-USA or it’s a team in the NCAA Tournament, they’re going to have to play well to beat WKU.

Adjustments: A+

Again, the fact that two of six were hampered or out for over half of the game each is just a testament to the iron will of the Tops. Running offense without Jairus Hamilton seems a foreign concept. Jamarion Sharp not being available for his normal 30+ minutes has been unheard of since November. Being ice cold and still finding ways to the cup and to the free throw line was just an extra special level of grit. Without question, this team just established a new way to win: Ugly. And I’m all for it. I’d rather see an ugly win where you know you just gutted out a victory than giving up 80 and winning just because you make every shot. Ugly means you had to work for it. Pretty means you got lucky that you didn’t miss. Winning despite the misses is a sign of a better overall “team” than making pretty shots.

Offense: C

Less than 40% Shooting and less than 30% from three. There’s no way you can be thrilled with that offensive output, but these numbers do get highly skewed when the entire team just goes ice cold for only one field goal in the last quarter of the game. That’s a difficult proposition. But the Tops found a way, and they didn’t take any absolutely stupid shots, and certainly not consistently. So just simply because of the abnormally low numbers and massive cold streak, this can’t be a high grade. But everything WKU could control being done well drives this up to a passing grade.

Defense: A

Outrebounding a good rebounding team that relies on physicality goes a long way in winning a game. Add in the fact that WKU held ODU to 34% in the first half and a shade over 40% while only committing seven fouls and allowing eight free throws is just extraordinary. And the Tops forced 13 turnovers on a team that likes to slow it down and take of the ball. ODU got a little hot after things relaxed and shot better in the second half. It also really helps that WKU couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn for ten minutes and plenty of rebounds were to be had to allow ODU to have flow into their offense. Having to inbounds really slows down the flow of an offense sometimes. So it’s difficult to see how WKU could have played better defense. The reason it’s not a complete A+ is just because the Tops allowed ODU to get back in it. Elite defense should help prevent massive swings in scoring margin to the negative. But overall, this was an awesome effort defensively.

Coaching

Coaching Overall: A

This was absolutely one of Rick Stansbury’s better games, especially considering all of the crapola that he had to deal with during the game. There was some questionable officiating, first of all. I think they were awful both ways, but the Tops seem to get some doozies when they draw officials. He did a good job navigating that garbage. Also, he dealt with a first half injury to a player that can play any of three positions in Jairus Hamilton. Losing Hamilton really keeps WKU from being a versatile basketball team that can go small or huge. That’s a 6’8” Power Five level body that can shoot and post up one-on-one and pass out of trouble if and when it comes, as well as play solid defense in the post. Then Jamarion Sharp gets (and stays) in foul trouble most of the game, not even playing 20 minutes. So WKU’s only significant, consistent post players didn’t combine for even 35 total minutes.

So to Rick Stansbury’s credit, Isaiah Cozart finally gets his chance, and he gets the internal team award for “Most Valuable Teammate”. His statistical impact was almost non-existent, but the hustle plays and intangibles were off the charts. But credit to Rick for pushing the right buttons, trusting a bench player both in the first half and second half, and finding a way to get this team across the finish line when the lead melted down. This was absolutely one of his better performances. To go in against Jeff Jones with a second chance and a desperate team against a WKU team that had already won six in a row that’s due for a letdown, the letdown comes offensively, and WKU wins with ease. Excellent job by Rick Stansbury to overcome everything in this game.

Game Plan: A

I really liked that Rick Stansbury found ways to get guys involved this game. The fact that WKU was able to draw 13 more fouls than ODU is just astounding and absolutely the difference in the game. And frankly, the Tops did a good job getting guys open and having good flow offensively. Of the 31 threes WKU took, less than ten were ones that felt a little rush. I’d say five or six maybe weren’t perfect selections. I can remember one from Cam Justice where he had a hand in his face, wasn’t in rhythm, and had more than ten seconds on the shot clock and cranked it. There aren’t too many of those “WTF” moments, and I think Rick deserves credit for getting his guys open and allowing them to shoot good shots. I think WKU just missed a lot of opportunity, and the fact that 50% of their shots were from deep looks ominous, but keep in mind that WKU also got to the charity stripe 22 times, meaning some of the shots taken were washed away with ODU fouls. Good job offensively and defensively, and WKU’s efficiency on offense forced Jeff Jones to go zone, and WKU beat ODU on the boards as a consequence. Excellent stuff from Rick.

Coaching Adjustments: A+

Could anything else have gone wrong for WKU? The margin for this team is getting to Bailey Zappe levels. Remember when WKU Football wasn’t going to lose unless its opponents scored 40? Well, WKU is getting to the point that there aren’t many ways for them to lose. They’ve now had the bad shooting night. They’ve already been murdered on the boards the previous two games and won easily. They’ve missed free throws and still won. They’ve played bad defense and won. This team is just so efficient with so many weapons that the margin for error is insane.

In this game, they had foul trouble, injuries, and could not throw it in the ocean for 1/4 of the game. Frampton and Justice both didn’t hit their threes like they have been. Heck, Dayvion McKnight only had one assist, a guy who averages nearly six per game! All kinds of things didn’t go right for WKU, but here were are celebrating seven in a row. Shout out to Rick Stansbury, who kept all of the balls in the air and didn’t drop them in seven games over 17 days.

Motivational Coaching: A+

Without question, the past seven games have been a turning point. Everyone probably just said “duh” to that, but my goodness. There has been a tangible difference. Western got pissed off for greatness in Early February and is yet to take its foot off the gas. Maybe the USM game was one in which the Tops were asleep a little bit, but still, WKU was focused enough to score 87 points in that game and win fairly routinely. And that has to come back to Rick Stansbury getting his guys on board and realizing that they had to go on a run or they were in for a nightmare. Well, fellas. We’ve still got plenty to play for and we need every one of these. So let’s not take our feet off the gas when it’s time to mash the accelerator to the floor.

Overall: A

Of course the shooting wasn’t great. So what? That’s not something WKU really can control. I’ll ding the grade for that. Other than that, Western just found a way to win against an opponent perfectly capable of winning while having multiple disasters come hot and heavy periodically throughout the game. To recap, Jamarion Sharp was only available for 19 minutes due to foul trouble. Fortunately in his 19 minutes, he was massively productive with a near double-double. Jairus Hamilton went down late in the first half with an apparently middle leg issue which has turned out to be most likely tendonitis. Fortunately the 14 minutes he did play were pretty good and he produced seven points in his short stint on the court.

And the usual suspects (besides Dayvion McKnight) were not extraordinary, although they did produce points and rebounds. And even McKnight himself was not a vision of perfection, only producing one assist, a season low by far (previous low was three twice).

In addition, the Tops as a team were dealing with a ton of adversity. With the win streak now at seven, a lot of pressure can come with winning so many in a row. Odds are you have a bad game or two. Sometimes luck just bites, regardless of how well you’re locked in. And keep in mind, the pressure was on Rick Stansbury and on the players at the time this streak started. Stansbury may have been a few more losses away from getting run out of town, regardless of WKU Athletic Director Todd Stewart’s bolstering statements. And WKU was sitting in sixth place staring at the possibility of easily extending the losing streak to eight before feeling they had a game they definitely “should” win. And that one and the next one would have been on the road on short rest. The pressure was immense, and they came out and blasted through that win streak like it was nothing.

Plus WKU has done all of this within 17 days’ time, meaning they have barely had time to breathe for the last three weeks. In addition, it’s well-documented that Rick Stansbury is choosing to play six players for the most part. So physically, there’s no way they haven’t been feeling it. And keep in mind five of them have had injury scares this season. Josh Anderson is the lone Topper without some kind of injury threat, although even he missed time because of COVID.

WKU gets high marks for this game because of a few things. First of all, they built such a cushion (20 points) that the last ten minutes of the game didn’t really matter. WKU only scored 14 points in the last ten minutes, 12 of which were free throws and several of which came as ODU was trying to foul to stop the clock. Second of all, in the part of the game that was really crucial, WKU was incredible, probably playing to the level of winning by 25 or 30. That level massively fell off, and ODU hit some shots in the second half to make the score look way more interesting.

So is it concerning that WKU once again melted down a nice lead and nearly allowed a team fully back in it? Yes. But they also were so incredible for most of the game that they didn’t have to be worth a dime for over ten minutes to still win comfortably, ultimately winning by nine in a game that was inside two possessions for about a minute in the second half.

So moving forward, WKU is in the midst of a full week off, not playing on Monday or Thursday for the first time since January 1-8, when they had a full week off between the loss at La Tech and the home win against FIU. So WKU draws Middle at Middle, but the Tops will be on a full week’s rest, while MTSU will have played two other games since WKU played late Saturday. Despite Middle’s bad luck in having three games in six days, they do get all three in their “glass house”, which apparently they think is a cool nickname. I’m not sure they’re familiar with the concept of not throwing rocks when living in a glass house, but it’s Middle, bless their heart.

Hopefully, WKU keeps this thing rolling and comes into the Murphy Center, lights a bomb, and blows up the Blue Raiders on a mission and gets the heck out of that hole as quickly as possible.

Bring the hate, Tops. We don’t take a game against Middle lightly. Tear it up, Tops.