Senior guard Luke Frampton led the Hilltoppers this evening with a stellar performance to start his last season. Western Kentucky (1-0) pulled out the victory over Eastern Kentucky (1-1), beginning their season with a 66-60 win on the road.
Frampton scored 21 points, hitting six of his eight field goal attempts, including five-of-six three-pointers. He was a huge reason why WKU was able to fight back and maintain the lead as the game winded down.
Senior forward Jairus Hamilton also had a solid game for WKU, scoring 11 points with nine rebounds and two steals. Hamilton gave WKU a well-needed scoring lift after Dayvion McKnight couldn't find his rhythm tonight on the offensive end.
Although McKnight struggled to score tonight, he impacted the game in other ways with five rebounds, six assists, and two steals. That's a sign of a great player when he understands his impact on the game goes beyond scoring, so that's a positive.
IT WAS OVER WHEN: EKU's Michael Moreno and John Ukomadu missed three crucial free throws down the stretch that could've very well changed the outcome of this game. After Ukomadu missed back to back foul shots after getting fouled, the game was essentially over.
HE STOLE THE SHOW: Luke Frampton was an easy choice here, the Hilltoppers lose this game handily without this great outing from him.
THE STAT DOESN'T LIE: EKU ended this game shooting 33.9 percent from the field compared to WKU's 42.9 percent. The Hilltoppers also had more assists, steals, and blocks than EKU.
WHAT A PLAY: After a bad pass from EKU's Leland Walker, Jamarion Sharp stole the ball and threw it ahead to Jairus Hamilton, which resulted in a two-hand jam that cut WKU's deficit to one point.
THE BOTTOM LINE: WKU got off to a slow start, but was able to rally for a nice comeback win to open the season. They tied the Colonels in three-point field goals with ten in 14 less attempts, and they also had a higher field goal percentage than EKU. WKU starts the season off with a road win and they'll be in action again this Saturday against Kentucky State at 6:00 PM (CT).
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