Hilltoppers rain points on Campbellsville, bounce back with 102-59 win

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — WKU Hilltopper Basketball moved to 7-3 with a 102-59 win over Campbellsville on Monday night inside E.A. Diddle Arena.

The Hilltoppers used balanced scoring and steady defense in the 43-point win over the Tigers — WKU’s largest margin of victory this season. Ryan Myers led five Hilltoppers in double figures as WKU shot an efficient 50.0% from the field, dominated the glass (49-25) and turned it over just eight times in one of its most complete efforts of the season.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The game was tied 10-10 through the first five minutes after Campbellsville opened the game with a 3-pointer. WKU quickly answered with a layup from Teagan Moore and two free throws from Grant Newell. Ryan Myers scored his first five points with a 3-pointer and a layup to get the Hilltoppers to double digits.
• After the Tigers briefly went up by three, WKU responded with a 13-0 run to take a 23-13 lead at the 10:42 mark. The run featured a dunk from Noah Boyde, a tip-in from Armelo Boone, a 3-pointer and two free throws from Louie Semona, two free throws from Newell and a layup from LJ Hackman.
• WKU maintained a double-digit cushion at 35-23 with over five minutes left in the first half. Boone and Boyde scored four points each during the span, while Cam Haffner knocked down a 3-pointer.
• The Hilltoppers closed the half on a dominant 19-2 run, taking a 54-28 lead into the break. Myers led the surge with nine points, including two 3-pointers and three free throws. Boone added four points, while Moore and Boyde chipped in two each.
• WKU’s momentum carried into the second half, as the lead grew to 33 points within the first two and a half minutes. Boyde scored four, Myers drained another 3-pointer and Moore added a layup.
• Campbellsville answered with a 7-0 run to trim the deficit to 26, but WKU countered with a 10-2 burst to go up 74-40 with 13:46 remaining. Newell scored seven of those points with a 3-pointer and four free throws.
• The Hilltoppers blew the game open with a 20-0 run, extending the lead to 50 points at the five-minute mark. Semona and Boone each tallied eight points during the stretch, with Semona hitting two 3-pointers and a layup while Boone finished at the rim four times. Kade Unseld added a 3-pointer and Blaise Keita contributed a free throw.
• Moore and Haffner hit late 3-pointers as WKU closed out a dominant 102–59 victory over Campbellsville.

NOTABLES

• WKU improves to 7-3 on the season and 9-0 all-time against Campbellsville.
• Tonight’s starting five was Ryan Myers, LJ Hackman, Teagan Moore, Grant Newell and Noah Boyde.
• The announced attendance was 2,547.
• Five Hilltoppers scored in double figures, led by Ryan Myers with 19 points, followed by Armelo Boone with 18, Louie Semona with 16, Noah Boyde with 13 and Teagan Moore with 10.
• Myers posted an all-around line with 19 points on 5-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-8 from beyond the arc and 5-of-6 at the free throw line, while matching his career high with eight rebounds, adding four assists and one steal in 25 minutes.
• Boone delivered 18 points on an efficient 9-of-13 from the field, setting a career high in field goals made, and added a career-high eight rebounds plus two steals in 20 minutes.
• Semona turned in a season-best 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting, going 4-of-5 from 3-point range for another season high, and filled the stat sheet with a career-high four steals, three rebounds, a season-high three assists in a season-high 22 minutes.
• Boyde recorded a career-high 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting, grabbed seven rebounds to tie his career best, added one block and logged a career-high 19 minutes.
• Newell finished with 12 points, going a perfect 9-of-9 at the free throw line to set a career high, while also contributing six rebounds and one block.
• Moore contributed 10 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals in 23 minutes of action.
• Hackman impacted the game as a distributor, dishing out a career-high six assists in 23 minutes.
• WKU shot 34-of-68 (50.0%) from the floor, 14-of-33 (42.4%) from 3-point range and 20-of-24 (83.3%) at the foul line.
• The Hilltoppers led in points off turnovers (23-14), points in the paint (38-22), second chance points (19-10), fast-break points (23-4), bench points (46-20), rebounds (49-25), assists (22-16) and steals (9-6).
• WKU committed just eight turnovers on the night, marking its fourth game this season with fewer than 10 giveaways.
• The Hilltoppers led for 35:39, while Campbellsville held the advantage for just 2:12. There were five lead changes and six ties.

QUOTABLES

“Happy to get a good win tonight. I’m not saying we strung together 40 perfect minutes or two perfect halves, but we consistently defended with some effort and strung together two decent halves on defense. We held them to about 30 points per half, which had been an issue. Second half defense is something we’ve talked about and addressed, so I was certainly happy to see us be able to maintain our defensive discipline for 40 minutes. I thought we remained aggressive and unselfish on offense for 40 minutes as well. All in all, it was probably a more positive night for us for sure. The last four or five days, I think we’ve been trying to figure some things out. I don’t know if we have them all figured out, but I think today was a step in the right direction. Obviously, we have one more huge game on Friday night before Christmas break, so we’re trying to build into that and hopefully end this first half on a positive note.” — Mahurin Family Foundation Head Men’s Basketball Coach Hank Plona, on the win over Campbellsville.

“I’ve been working every day since the summer. I think we played really well as a team tonight, and I worked hard to space the floor and give my teammates space. If my man helps off, I’m always there for the kick, and I’ll do the same for them, so basically all of my buckets came from my teammates just finding me and me being in the right place.” — Forward Louie Semona, on his scoring in the win over Campbellsville.

“I’m just trying to do whatever the team needs me to do on a nightly basis, on a day-to-day basis. Louie said it all, we work hard every day. It’s nothing new to us if we have a good game. It’s just what we do, we work hard.” — Forward Noah Boyde, on his role in the win over Campbellsville.

NEXT UP

WKU plays its final nonconference game of the season against Tulsa at home on Friday, Dec. 19. Tipoff at E.A. Diddle Arena is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT and will stream live on ESPN+.