WKU Basketball: Tops Put on Clinic in Second Half to Down Marshall 64–60
WKU Basketball hit the road to face rival Marshall in the first of back to back matchups. The Tops would once again dig themselves a hole…
WKU Basketball hit the road to face rival Marshall in the first of back to back matchups. The Tops would once again dig themselves a hole but overcame a 19 point deficit with a dominant second half to escape Huntington with a 64–60 win.
The first half was a nightmare as WKU shot just 28% from the field and Marshall dominated inside and outshooting 52% as they lead by as much as 19 points before taking a 39–25 lead to the locker room.
WKU came out of the locker room and responded with an 8–0 run to get the lead to 6. WKU forced turnovers with the press as the Herd had trouble with the sped-up pace.
Marshall would respond by hitting a few shots and keep the lead between 5 and 10 until a Jared Savage 3 pointer cut it to 4 with 9:37 remaining.
WKU would get it down to 2 before Jannson Williams would respond with clutch three-pointer to extend the lead to 5 at the under 8 timeout.
Carson Williams and Jared Savage would keep the momentum going and tie it up at 58 around the six-minute mark. Jordan Rawls would nail a layup to give WKU their first lead of the game.
That run would spurt out to 9–0 and a four-point lead with 2:20 remaining. Kinsey would cut the Topper lead to two and WKU would cling to that 2 point lead with 1:17 left in the game.
Both teams would go back and forth and not score as WKU’s defense clamped down. Taveion Hollinsworth would go to the line with 19.9 seconds left and drain both hitting 20 on the day. Marshall would miss their ensuing shot attempt and WKU would escape Huntington with a 64–60 victory to stay in first place in Conference USA.
Here are some post-game thoughts from another thrilling comeback.
Besides the Middle Tennessee game, WKU hasn’t had a good start during the entire conference schedule. That will have to change if they want to compete for the title. Depending on coming back every time isn’t a good strategy for success.
Taveion Hollingsworth’s recent streak of all-conference play continued tonight. He not only kept his scoring high at 20 points but also chipped in 4 rebounds & 4 steals. That will do and more than made up for his 6 turnovers tonight.
WKU won the turnover battle 21-14. The press continues to be WKU’s strength and helps WKU overcome their lack of size inside. Seeing it work repeatedly is a great sign for future prospects.
WKU only lost the rebounding battle 34–28 which was amazing as Marshall’s height advantage was massive. The pressing defense helped close the margin. When WKU keeps it close good things happen.
Marshall only made 6 Three-Point Shots after recent seasons that will do all day.
Jared Savage wasn’t the bulldog he’s been recently but his recent run of gritty play continued. He four three pointers and added 4 rebounds and 2 blocks. His hustle continues to help WKU compete night in and night out.
Carson Williams also grinded inside against a much taller team. His 15 points and 4 steals helped him win the matchup against the much larger Ira Bennett.
Jordan Rawls continues to be steady even when he doesn’t take over the game. He had 7 points, 4 assists, and only 2 turnovers and made back to back buckets to give WKU the lead. You can see Stansbury’s trust in him grow every game.
Cam Justice had another empty game in 15+ minutes. He had 0 points and missed all four of his shots. He luckily didn’t turn it over but WKU needs to get something from him or Stans can’t justify playing him over Gambrell moving forward.
The refs generally let both teams play tonight as the foul margin was 14 to 9 in WKU’s favor. WKU continued to make teams pay at the line as they hit 12–14 free throws.
Tonight was a step back for the bench as Stansbury only played Justice in the second half. Hopefully, his trust in Gambrell and Cozart doesn’t go away as the season continues to drag on
With the win tonight WKU moves to 13–6 and 6–1 in Conference USA and remains tied for first with North Texas. WKU probably only needs to win three of their next 7 to clinch a pod one spot. Hopefully, this team has the goal of Conference Title on their minds and can translate second half focus into full games.
WKU gets the Herd again on Saturday at 6:30 PM in Diddle Arena. That game is a golden opportunity to continue this streak of hot play as the Tops have now won four in a row and six of their last seven. Should they do it they’ll be in great shape for that top pod spot.
Here are your final stats from yet another huge comeback victory
