WKU MBB drops final non-conference matchup with Tulsa in closing seconds

4 hours ago

WNKY Staff,

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — WKU Hilltopper Basketball dropped to 7-4 with an 82-81 loss to Tulsa on Friday night inside E.A. Diddle Arena.

HOW IT HAPPENED

WKU jumped out to a quick start as Grant Newell buried a 3-pointer on the opening possession and Teagan Moore followed with a layup to give the Hilltoppers a 5-0 lead. Tulsa responded with a 6-0 spurt into the first media timeout to grab its first advantage of the game.

The Golden Hurricane added another basket out of the break, but WKU answered with an 11-0 run to reclaim control, 16-8, with just over 12 minutes left in the half. The surge featured 3-pointers from Newell, Ryan Myers and Louie Semona, along with another finish at the rim from Moore.

At the third media timeout, the Hilltoppers led 25-20. During that stretch, Armelo Boone contributed four points, Newell connected on his third 3-pointer and Moore scored again inside.

WKU carried a 37-30 advantage into halftime after Boone added two more field goals, Myers knocked down another triple and Moore continued to produce with another basket at the rim.
Tulsa came out hot in the second half, using a 14-5 run to move back in front, 43-42, within the first three minutes. WKU quickly responded with a 9-3 burst to retake the lead, 51-46, highlighted by four points from Boone, a Myers 3-pointer and two free throws from Newell.

The Golden Hurricane again closed the gap to 57-56 with 9:32 remaining, but the Hilltoppers stretched the margin to 64-58 thanks to free throws from Cam Haffner and Blaise Keita and Newell’s sixth 3-pointer of the night.

WKU maintained a slim lead over the next five minutes, holding a 71-66 edge after a Semona triple and a Newell and-one at the 4:49 mark.
The closing minutes turned into a wild back-and-forth battle featuring seven lead changes. With 2:04 left, Tulsa went ahead 74-73, but Boone hit a jumper to give WKU a 75-74 lead with 52 seconds remaining. Tulsa responded with a 3-pointer to make it 77-75, before Haffner buried one of his own to push WKU back in front, 78-77, with 29 seconds to go.

After Tulsa sank a pair of free throws to briefly regain the lead, Newell hit 1-of-2 at the line to put WKU up 81-79 with five seconds left. However, Tulsa’s final possession ended with a clutch 3-pointer, handing the Hilltoppers an 82-81 loss.

NOTABLES

WKU finishes nonconference play 7-4 and drops to 1-6 all-time against Tulsa.
Tonight’s starting five was Ryan Myers, LJ Hackman, Teagan Moore, Grant Newell and Noah Boyde.
The announced attendance was 3,547.
Three Hilltoppers scored in double figures, led by 28 from Grant Newell, 16 from Armelo Boone and 15 from Teagan Moore.
Newell turned in a career performance, scoring a personal-best 28 points on 8-of-15 shooting. The junior forward was lethal from beyond the arc, hitting a career-high six 3-pointers on eight attempts and added six points at the free throw line. He also grabbed a season-high nine rebounds and logged a career-high 34 minutes.
Armelo Boone delivered the first double-double of his career with 16 points and a career-best 12 rebounds in 31 minutes. The sophomore guard went 5-of-15 from the field and an efficient 6-of-7 from the stripe while adding two steals and a block.
Moore had 15 points, nine rebounds, a career-high six assists and a block in 31 minutes of action.
Ryan Myers contributed nine points on three made 3-pointers while also tallying four assists and three steals across 31 minutes.
Louie Semona scored six points on perfect 2-of-2 shooting from deep in just 10 minutes of action.
As a team, WKU shot 25-of-61 (41.0%) from the floor, 12-of-29 (41.4%) from 3-point range and 19-of-24 (79.2%) at the foul line.
The Hilltoppers led in points off turnovers (15-13), points in the paint (24-22), second chance points (13-7), fast-break points (17-10), bench points (29-21) and rebounds (39-33).
The Hilltoppers led for 33:35, while Tulsa held the advantage for 4:34. There were 13 lead changes and seven ties.

QUOTABLES

“A very tough loss. When you’re leading down the stretch and for most of the basketball game, you feel like it’s a game that would be a great win for your team, a great win for our team and obviously we didn’t close the door. That part of it is a struggle for sure. We have a team that’s competitive and we’re right there and as our bodies and personnel change a little bit, we’ve had to play a little different and I thought we did a lot of positive things tonight.” — Mahurin Family Foundation Head Men’s Basketball Coach Hank Plona, on the loss to Tulsa.

“I had a feeling that the ball was going to go to the shooter, I mean, that is something that has been at the top of the scouting report. We watched a ton of film on them and just made a mistake at the end of the game, but I feel like all of us knew that it was coming. We just have to do a better job of executing down the stretch.” — F Grant Newell, on the final play in the loss to Tulsa.

“We knew it was coming, but we just got caught up. At the end of the day, it shouldn’t have gotten to that point. We were up five, and we lost in the second half. So, it shouldn’t have gotten to that point.” — G Teagan Moore, on the final shot in the loss to Tulsa.

NEXT UP

WKU begins Conference USA play, facing Jax State on the road on Monday, Dec. 29. Tipoff in Jacksonville, Ala. is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.