11/12/2021 basketball Edit

WKU falls short 73-69 to Minnesota in Asheville Championship opener

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Drew Toennies • InsideHilltopperSports

Staff Writer

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.

"Give Minnesota some credit, they made shots, jumped up and made shots with however many threes. I thought the difference in the game was the last four minutes of the first half. As a team, you've got to find a way to win those last four minutes... That's tough to overcome when you're playing a good team."

— Rick Stansbury

Dayvion McKnight tallied 34 points, nine rebounds, and four assists on Friday (The Asheville Championship)

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.

"I was just worried about coming back and trying to get the win today, playing with my teammates, trying to find those open spots and get to the free throw line as much as I can."

— Dayvion McKnight

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.

"Like coach said, they made a lot of tough shots down the stretch, a lot of shots that we had guys right in their face. They were just knocking down big shots time after time, so credit to them for those."

— Josh Anderson

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.

"But again, our guys didn't give up. They put themselves in position in a one possession game late in the game. There's no moral victories but I'm proud of that fight in them. I know we've got new pieces and we've got to get better and learn from that."

— Rick Stansbury

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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