Hilltoppers enter four-game home stretch hosting Tennessee State on Tuesday

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU men’s basketball enters a four-game home stretch beginning with a matchup hosting Tennessee State on Tuesday, Dec. 10. Tipoff in E.A. Diddle Arena is slated for 7 p.m. CT with ESPN+ set to broadcast the event.

Hilltopper Basketball prepares for Tuesday night’s meeting facing the Tigers standing at 5-3 overall and coming off a 79-65 win on the road at Evansville last Saturday. Babacar Faye led the Tops’ efforts in the win over the Purple Aces, charting a 19-point, 12-rebound double-double and helping WKU to its fifth victory of the teams’ last six outings.

GAME INFO
WKU (5-3) vs. Tennessee State (3-6)
Tuesday, Dec. 10 | 7 p.m. CT
E.A. Diddle Arena | Bowling Green, Ky.

Watch: ESPN+ (Reilly McElmeel & Jay Walton)

Listen: Hilltopper Sports Radio Network | 100.7-FM (WKLX)/Varsity Network (Randy Lee, Hal Schmitt)

Live Stats: Sidearm Stats // StatBroadcast

Tickets: WKUTickets.com | 1-800-5-BIG RED

HC Hank Plona Weekly Pregame Presser: https://youtu.be/8QqTA2EvDLg

*Game notes to follow

ABOUT THE TOPS

Faye currently leads the Hilltoppers in scoring and rebounding, averaging 15.5 points and 7.9 boards per contest; the senior big is also shooting at a team-high .547% clip from the field, good for third-best in CUSA, and ranks fourth in CUSA for rebounding
Faye holds the conference’s fifth-best free-throw percentage at .822% (37-of-45) off the fifth-most attempts in the league
Don McHenry currently charts as the Hilltoppers’ second-leading scorer at 14.8 PPG and averages 2.0 assists per game, good for second-most on the team; the senior guard ranks 10th in CUSA for field-goal percentage with a .409% mark
Faye and McHenry currently chart as the seventh and eighth-leading scorers in CUSA respectively
Faye and Tyrone Marshall Jr. lead the Hilltoppers in blocks with six each; both players chart top 20 in CUSA for blocks
Marshall ranks sixth in CUSA for defensive rebounding with 48 on the year
Freshman Julius Thedford is currently the team’s third-leading scorer averaging 13.8 points per game and leads the team in three-point percentage (min 10 attempts) with a .500% clip from range; Thedford’s .500% mark from the field is good for second on the team (min 10 attempts)
The Tops rank second in CUSA in steals with 9.00 per contest; McHenry charts fourth in the league for steals with 15 on the year (1.9 p/g)
Jalen Jackson leads the Tops and charts top 20 in CUSA for assists with 2.6 per game
WKU is currently tied for 9th in the nation in adjusted tempo with an average of 72.6 possessions per 40 minutes

SERIES INFORMATION

WKU stands at 9-0 all time facing Tennessee State in a series dating back to 1985. The Tops are 8-0 playing at home against the Tigers and 1-0 on the road in Nashville.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS

TSU enters Tuesday’s game with a 3-6 overall record and coming off a 92-74 home loss to UNC Asheville
Sophomore forward Antoine Lorick III recorded a 19-point, 10-rebound double-double in the loss; Lorick currently charts a team-best .744% shooting clip from the field
Redshirt junior guard Brandon Weston leads the Tigers in scoring averaging 17.0 points per contest
Graduate forward Ahmir Langlais averages a team-high 6.8 rebounds per outing

AT THE GAME

Tuesday will serve as Hilltopper Basketball’s Community Night with local churches and other community groups across Bowling Green receiving discounted tickets. Fans who donate a toy or stuffed bear to Toys For Tots can also receive a voucher for a 10 dollar ticket. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 1-800-5-BIG RED or visit WKUTickets.com.