3/4/2022 basketball Edit

Stansbury, Anderson, Justice preview finale against Marshall

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Drew Toennies • InsideHilltopperSports

Staff Writer

The Hilltoppers are set to close out the regular season with the second game against Moonshine Throwdown rival Marshall in the course of four days. WKU head coach Rick Stansbury, graduate guard Camron Justice and fifth year guard Josh Anderson met with the media on Friday afternoon to preview the regular season finale at E.A. Diddle Arena.

Western Kentucky defeated Marshall 86-72 in the first meeting at the Cam Henderson Center in Huntington, W.V. A victory over the Thundering Herd on Saturday will hand the Hilltoppers a second place finish in C-USA's east division and a bye to the Conference USA Tournament quarterfinals game.

Saturday's game will be the last home contest for Justice and Anderson, who will be exiting Western Kentucky after the conclusion of this season.

"Some people take things for granted because you've done it once on the road and then you show up at home and it will be easy. That isn't going to be the case at all. Marshall's been a really good team of late."

— Rick Stansbury

Stansbury opened up his portion of the press conference by talking about how talented the Moonshine Throwdown rival has become this season and how capable they are of upsetting the Hilltoppers' at home.

Stansbury referenced a game earlier this season where Marshall almost upset C-USA East champion Middle Tennessee, leading the entire contest until the end, when the Blue Raiders stole the game in the final seconds.

Stansbury also gave an update on redshirt senior guard Luke Frampton, who returned on Wednesday's game against Marshall.

"At least Luke played the other night. ... There was two times that he asked to be taken out. One, just for a fatigue standpoint and the other was he was just cramping."

— Rick Stansbury

Stansbury explained that Frampton was experiencing cramps in the first game, but he fully expects him to play against Marshall on Saturday, claiming that playing in the first game helped him a lot with getting back into rythm.

Stansbury also gave an injury update on senior forward Jairus Hamilton, who hasn't played since Feb. 19 against Old Dominion, due to a knee injury.

Stansbury was unsure if Hamilton would be playing on Saturday.

"It's probably more of a game-time decision with him come Saturday. I'll know a little more about that today, but he's getting closer."

— Rick Stansbury

Anderson and Justice, who are set to end their collegiate basketball careers after the conclusion to this season, talked about how significant this last home game is to them.

Justice joked there was another year of eligibility waiting for him before revealing how it feels for him mentally going into Diddle Arena for the last time as a player.

"I'm just grateful to be here, happy to be a part of this team and I think the job's not done, so I don't really look at it as the last game."

— Camron Justice

Justice also talked about being a leader this season for the younger players and how he felt about being able to contribute.

"Just lead by example. I've battled through a lot of adversity in my college career and every time I've bounced back. I think just leading by example, being the guy they can come to and talk to, being the leader out on the court. Just doing everything in my power to be the best thing I can be for this team."

— Camron Justice

Anderson is also set to exit the program after this season. The fifth year guard is currently tied for the most games played in program history and is set to break that record on Saturday in his 142nd game as a Hilltopper.

Anderson communicated the goal was to finish his last home game with a win.

"As long as we get the job done, everything's going to be cool, so I feel like that's the biggest thing we're worried about. Just getting the dub."

— Josh Anderson

Anderson also talked about how the season isn't over yet and that the significance of playing in his last home game hasn't quite crossed his mind yet.

"We're obviously not done, but at the same time, it's been great. ... I feel like it hasn't hit me yet."

— Josh Anderson

Western Kentucky is set to close out the regular season on Saturday, taking on rival Marshall at E.A. Diddle Arena on Saturday. The opening tip is scheduled for 2 p.m. CT and will air on ESPN+.

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