Hilltopper drop season opener at home to Wichita State

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Monday marked the start of the season in college basketball with official games taking place on the hardwood and the WKU men’s basketball team began things here in Bowling Green.

The Wichita State Shockers journeyed to the Hill to play first year head coach Hank Plona and the Hilltoppers in an exciting contest, with fans packing Diddle Arena.

The two teams met a year ago in Kansas, with the game going to the Shockers, but last night the reigning Conference USA champions were looking for revenge and a positive start to the season.

Tops Forward Babacar Faye was outstanding on the court, scoring a career high 28 points on 9-16 shooting, but for Wichita State, first-year Shocker Justin Hill had himself a debut, putting up a game-high 31 points, and the Shockers deny coach Plona a win in his first appearance as head coach of the Tops, as they fall 91-84 in game one.

The Shockers drain five more triples than WKU and leave Bowling Green with a win, and now the Tops will aim to grab their first victory of 2024 on Saturday when they take on Grand Canyon on the road at 7 p.m.