WKU Basketball: Tops Snap 3 Game Losing Streak; Defeat FAU, 72–66
After a string of three straight excruciating defeats, the WKU basketball team finally played a solid second half and defeated the…
After a string of three straight excruciating defeats, the WKU basketball team finally played a solid second half and defeated the hot-shooting FAU Owls, 72–66, in front of 4,963 fans in Diddle Arena on Saturday.
The game started off slowly as WKU fell behind by as much as 12 points in the first half as FAU was unconscious from three-point range, hitting 10 of their first 17 attempts as the Owls took a 40–34 lead into the locker room.
The second half was a different story altogether: The Tops came out of the locker room and quickly erased their deficit on the strength of a season-high 24 points from Taveion Hollingsworth.
WKU extended their lead to as much as seven points, but FAU hit some clutch three pointer’s to hang in the game as they tied it at 62–62 with 4:10 remaining.
Western Kentucky finally showed some late-game poise that has been missing lately, ending the game on a 10–4 run in a 72–66 victory. The Tops moved to 9–9 (2–3 in CUSA) on the season.
Here are a few quick thoughts on a much-needed win:
Rick Stansbury finally has started to show some trust in Lamonte Bearden. Bearden played 26 minutes, finishing with 11 points, three rebounds, one assist and most importantly, no turnovers. Stansbury needs to play the hot hand between Bearden and Dalano Banton if he wants this team to take off. Today’s lineup management was a great start.
WKU finally limited their turnovers today and it showed. On the day, WKU committed 11 turnovers. While not flawless, it was a great sign of improvement after nightmare performances during the losing streak. If the Tops can continue to limit the turnovers then they’ll finally start to take off.
Tolu Smith has struggled lately. He isn’t really giving many quality minutes off the bench right now. If this team wants to take another step, he or Matthew Horton need to give WKU quality minutes when Charles Bassey is taking a break.
Marek Nelson didn’t play today due to a back injury. Stansbury said that he may not play the rest of the season. That is yet another big blow to a line up that is thin of productive players in the frontcourt. Let’s hope he works his way back later in the year.
Today’s attendance of 4,963 was the lowest of the season. I don’t blame fans for sending a message by not showing up after the frustrating past two weeks. Hopefully, today was the start of a resurgence that springboard’s us to March.
It feels good to win a game, especially after all of the frustrating losses before today. The Tops return to action in just two days, as they get a chance at redemption against Marshall (11–6) for an MLK Day showdown. A win and the Tops can start to get their season on track. Here are your stats from today’s win.
