Western Kentucky (1-1) fell short 73-69 in the Asheville Championship opener against Minnesota (2-0) as the Golden Gophers held off a last-minute comeback effort from the Hilltoppers.
WKU guard Dayvion McKnight dominated the court for the Hilltoppers with 34 points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Trailing McKnight was WKU senior forward Jairus Hamilton, who scored 12 points and had six rebounds.
Minnesota forward Jamison Battle led the Golden Gophers' offense with 20 points, six rebounds and two assists.
Guard Payton Willis had 19 points, six rebounds and one assist followed by guard E.J. Stephens who had 18 points and five rebounds.
The Hilltoppers were 43% (24-56) from the field, 26% (5-19) from three point range and 80% (16-20) from the free throw line. WKU additionally had 10 turnovers compared to Minnesota's 12.
The Golden Gophers were 41% (24-59) from field goal range, 39% (12-31) from three-point range and were 72% (13-18) from the free throw line. Minnesota outrebounded the Hilltoppers 39-34.
The Hilltoppers struggled in the opening minutes, calling a timeout at 15:55 after a three-minute scoring drought and 0-of-4 shooting from the field. Meanwhile, the Golden Gophers were on a 9-0 run.
WKU returned to the court after the timeout and went on a 6-0 run while Minnesota struggled from the field.
With less than 10 minutes remaining, Minnesota forward Jamison Battle hit two consecutive three pointers to initiate an 8-0 scoring run for the Gophers.
At 4:57, WKU was on a 7-0 run, but in the final minutes of the first half Minnesota regained control of the game and ignited a 7-0 scoring run while WKU was 1-of-7 from field goal range down the stretch.
At halftime, WKU trailed Minnesota 35-23.
Jairus Hamilton led the Hilltoppers with seven points and four rebounds followed by sophomore guard Dayvion McKnight who had six points and four rebounds.
Battle led Minnesota’s offense at the half with 18 points, six rebounds and two assists. Minnesota senior guard E.J. Stephens had eight points and two rebounds.
The Hilltoppers were 36% (10-28) from field goal range, 20% (2-10) from the three-point line and 33% (1-3) from the free throw line.
Minnesota was 39% (12-31) from the field while posting 40% (8-20) three-point shooting and 75% (3-4) shooting from the free throw line.
The Golden Gophers were additionally winning the rebound battle 21-18.
With 13:17 remaining in the game, Minnesota was 8-of-9 from the field while WKU had fallen behind the Gophers 53-39.
At the 3:49 mark, WKU cut into Minnesota’s lead, 68-59, after a Josh Anderson dunk.
With :36 seconds remaining, WKU was on a 13-2 run over the last 3:45 and trailed by just three points, 70-67.
Western Kentucky's comeback effort fell short as Jarius Hamilton missed a three-point attempt with :11 seconds remaining and Minnesota was able to ice the game with free-throws to secure a 73-69 win.
The Hilltoppers will face off against South Carolina on Sunday. Princeton defeated the Gamecocks 66-62 in the second game of the Asheville Championship on Friday night. Tip off is at 4 p.m. CST.
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