FRISCO, Texas — Western Kentucky’s season has again been extended.

After missing out on the NCAA Tournament but being chosen as one of 16 teams for the National Invitation Tournament, the Hilltoppers have accomplished the task of getting past the first round by beating Saint Mary’s 69-67 on Wednesday night at the Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas.

"Knowing our guys and knowing their character and knowing the toughness of them, they came out and played the way I believed they would play," WKU coach Rick Stansbury said. "They got themself up off that mat after getting knocked out and got up again. That's the thing I'm most proud of."

WKU (21-7) didn’t take its first lead of the game until the 8:30 mark of the first half, but held a 38-31 advantage at halftime and remained in front throughout the second half.

The Hilltoppers shot 45% from the field, 50% from 3-point range and recorded 17 assists on 25 made shots. They committed only four turnovers while forcing Saint Mary’s (14-10) into 10.

"We were smaller tonight, which made us quicker, which opened up the court" Stansbury said. "I thought that helped us. I thought, defensively, we had a lot of guys that were really good. For the most part, we kept them at bay."

WKU had four different players finish in double figures, led by 21 points from Taveion Hollingsworth. Alongside him, Charles Bassey finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Josh Anderson and Luke Frampton each scored 10 points.

Tommy Kuhse led the Gaels – who shot 48% from the field and 33% from 3 – with 17 points, and Matthias Tass scored 13.

The Tops will now face the Ole Miss/Louisiana Tech winner in the quarterfinals on March 25.

"We got the first one out of the way," Hollingsworth said. "You can't make excuses for the next one. If anything, we would've lost this one. I'm glad the guys got over the pain and the hurt (of the Conference USA Tournament championship loss) we were feeling all weekend. I'm pretty happy for the guys to see that we're going to make a run in this."

WKU played a strong opening half.

Saint Mary’s jumped out to a 6-2 lead and was soon up 13-6 after a Logan Johnson 3-pointer, but WKU scored six straight points to get within 13-12 at the 11:53 mark.

Tass scored inside to put the Gaels up 20-17, but the Hilltoppers assembled a momentum-swinging 15-3 run to build a 32-23 advantage with 4:49 remaining in the half.

Anderson knocked down a couple of quick 3s to put WKU up 38-27, but Saint Mary’s scored the final four points of the frame to cut the Tops’ lead to 38-31 at the break.

Back-to-back baskets from Dayvion McKnight and Hollingworth gave WKU a 42-33 lead at the 18:10 mark of the second half, and the Hilltoppers were up 45-37 after a Jordan Rawls layup at the 15:06 mark.

Frampton netted a triple – and then made a pair of free throws on the Hilltoppers’ next possession – to make it a 10-point WKU advantage at 54-44 with 12:19 remaining.

"I was just trying to do whatever it took to win," Frampton said. "Losing that championship game, a lot of people were hurt over the weekend. We just kind of came together and was like, 'Hey, let's do this one last time. We have one last opportunity to come out and play.' We came out on top today."

The Gaels used a 6-0 burst to cut their deficit to 55-50, but Hollingsworth scored in transition to end the run and make it a seven-point WKU lead with 8:59 remaining.

Tass’ 3 brought Saint Mary’s within 61-57, and Alex Ducas knocked one down shortly after to make it a 63-60 contest with 6:08 left.

Ducas scored on two straight trips – including knocking down a big 3 – to put the Gaels up 67-65, but WKU scored the final four points of the game – highlighted by two clutch Hollingsworth free throws – to seal it.

"Our guys came out and fought through and got themselves ready to play," Stansbury said. "This was the biggest one to get this out of your system a little bit. Now, we've got a little bit of time to go back and practice playing this way. We'll get ready to play the winner of Ole Miss and Louisiana Tech next Thursday."

– Tyler Mansfield is the managing editor and primary beat reporter for InsideHilltopperSports.com. Follow him on Twitter at @RivalsMansfield. –