1/13/2024 basketball Edit

WKU bounces back in C-USA play, defeating Jax State 80-69

Drew Toennies • InsideHilltopperSports

Staff Writer

After a close road loss to Sam Houston State this past week, Western Kentucky (13-4, 2-1 C-USA) bounced back in Conference USA play, picking up an 80-69 victory over Jacksonville State (10-8, 2-1 C-USA) to remain undefeated at home.

Western Kentucky shot 49.1% (26-53) from the floor, 50.0% (10-20) from beyond the arc and 72.0% (18-25) from the free throw line. The Hilltopper additionally outrebounded their conference foe 38-28 on the night.

"At the end of the day, I felt like our guys' defensive intensity and rebounding especially in the second half was a ton better. We gave up 45 points in the first half versus 26 in the second half. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to tell you we played better defense in the second half."

— Steve Lutz

WKU redshirt senior guard Brandon Newman was highly explosive for the Hilltoppers, dropping a career-high 25 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals.

"Going into the second, coach was like they're not really scoring on any of their set plays. They're just driving and getting down hill. And we had to do a better job on 24."

— Brandon Newman

Despite getting into foul trouble in the first half, WKU junior guard Don McHenry was unstoppable in the second frame, picking up a total of 19 points, four rebounds and three assists.

"Just making the game easier for us. We knew we had to chip away, we got to cut it down just so we can build up our momentum and come back in. That was definitely big for us for sure."

— Don McHenry

WKU senior guard Khristian Lander and junior forward Babacar Faye were also crucial to the Hilltoppers' success, combining for a grand total of 16 points on the night.

Lander finished the contest with eight points and four assists while Faye picked up eight points, seven rebounds and one block.

"It's been a while since people played us the way that Coach Harper and them did. They started switching all those screens and all that kinda stuff but it took us a little bit of time to adjust. And obviously in the second half, we did some different things ball screen wise."

— Steve Lutz

Jacksonville State shot 45.6% (26-57) from the field, 33.3% (6-18) from three-point range and 57.9% (11-19) from the free throw line in the heated conference matchup with the Hilltoppers.

Leading the Gamecocks on the scoreboard was graduate guard KyKy Tandy, who finished the contest with 25 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Jax State junior forward Marcellus Brigham Jr. was another high-level scoring weapon for the Gamecocks, collecting a total of 12 points, two rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Also establishing themselves for the Gamecocks was Jax State junior forward Andres Burney and junior guard Quincy Clark, who picked up a combined 16 points.

Burney finished the game with eight points, four rebounds, one block and one steal while Clark picked up eight points and three rebounds.

Western Kentucky will continue Conference USA play on the road next week, traveling to Las Cruces, N.M. to face off against New Mexico State on Thursday, Jan. 18th. The opening tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. CT as the matchup will air on ESPN+

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