Western Kentucky ended the 2021-22 season in Frisco, Texas last Thursday evening, faltering in the C-USA Tournament quarterfinals 59-57 to Louisiana Tech.

The Hilltoppers finished the season with a 19-13 overall record and an 11-7 record in C-USA play.

Since the season tipped off on Nov. 9 to the end of the season, here's a few observations about the Hilltoppers' going into the offseason.

Western Kentucky is a prestigous basketball program with the 15th highest winning percentage of any college basketball team, punching their way to the Big Dance 23 times with one Final Four appearance. The Hilltoppers have failed to make the NCAA Tournament the last nine years, dating back to the 2012-13 season.

Although the 2020 C-USA Tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hilltoppers made the C-USA championship game in 2018, 2019 and 2021 but fell short in all three to Marshall, Old Dominion and North Texas. WKU is 0-3 in conference championship games during Rick Stansbury's tenure.

Sophomore guard Dayvion McKnight will play a huge role in Western Kentucky's success moving forward. The former Mr. Kentucky Basketball star from Shelbyville has been unstoppable this season. McKnight has not only led the Hilltoppers in points per game but the acting point guard also secured the most minutes of any player.

McKnight finished off his sophomore campaign leading the team in points (16.2 per game) and assists (5.5 per game). McKnight was also second on the team, averaging 5.5 rebounds per game and led the team with 1,162 total minutes played this season, averaging 36.3 per game.

McKnight is indeed Western Kentucky's iron man and has also developed into a star.

With the conclusion of the season, both graduate guard Camron Justice and fifth-year guard Josh Anderson will be exiting the program, which will negatively impact an already short bench.

Both Justice and Anderson will be missed not just by WKU head coach Rick Stansbury and their teammates, but by the fans as well. The two have contributed so much on the court and their absence moving into the offseason brings about much uncertainty about who Stansbury can find in the offseason to fill their shoes.

Justice, who played for the Hilltoppers during the 2019 season, was granted eligibility to play in the 2021-22 season and dominated for the Hilltoppers with expert shooting from beyond the arc. Justice finished off the season with 442 total points, averaging 14.7 per game and 102 total rebounds, averaging 3.4 per game.

Anderson, who began his collegiate career at Western Kentucky in the 2017-18 season as a freshman, will be exiting the program and the university with a degree as a fifth year senior, capping off a wildly successful career. Anderson has played in 143 career games at Western Kentucky, making him the record holder for most played games in program history. Anderson averaged 12.4 points per game, scoring 361 total points this past season. He also recorded 130 total rebounds with 4.5 per game.

One of the bumps in the road for the Hilltoppers during the 2021-22 season was the team's limited bench. In nearly every contest, the same seven players rotated on and off the court. Stansbury was hoping to have a couple of more bodies at his disposal with the addition of Cincinnati transfer Keith Williams and freshman guard Zion Harmon, but neither player competed at all during the season.

Harmon, who was unavailable to play for personal reasons sat on the bench for the first portion of the season, never to return after the Western Kentucky's Christmas break.

Ranked the No. 58 player in the 2021 recruiting class, Harmon did not re-enroll for the spring semester.

Williams, who was eager to contribute to the Hilltoppers after transferring from Cincinatti was let down later on in the season, having his appeal for eligibility outright denied by the NCAA.

Williams played in 121 games and made 83 starts during his tenure with the Bearcats, averaging 9.6 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists.

During this last season, Western Kentucky has strengthened it's roster with commitments from two JUCO forwards set to join the team for the 2022-23 season.

Northwest Florida State College forward Fallou Diagne signed with Western Kentucky on Nov. 18, 2021, choosing to take his talents to the Hill, despite offers from Mississippi State and UTEP. The JUCO forward is ranked a three-star by Rivals.

The native of Dakar, Senegal appeared in 20 games for the Raiders in the 2020-21 season, averaging 7.5 points and 2.9 rebounds per game in 14 minutes per game. In the 2021-22 season, Diagne averaged 3.0 points and 2.3 rebounds per game.

Three-star forward Tyrone Marshall Jr., a product of Colby (Kan.) Community College signed with Western Kentucky for the 2022-23 season, inking his commitment on July 25, 2021.

With the Trojans in the 2021-22 season, Marshall averaged 16.2 points and 8.8 rebounds per game.

Western Kentucky fell short of breaking their NCAA Tournament drought and had to overcome complications all season, including a short bench, a five-game losing streak and a few injuries.

Instead of staying down, the Hilltoppers got back up and fought their way back by winning nine of their last ten regular season games, good enough for a second-place finish in C-USA's East Division and a bye to the quarterfinals of the conference tournament.

Dayvion McKnight took home First-Team, All-CUSA honors while Jamarion Sharp was named to the All-C-USA Defensive Team and was awarded the C-USA Defensive Player of the Year.

The way that WKU jumped back into the season with dominance and control is hopeful moving forward into the offseason.

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