WKU Men’s Basketball hung on to defeat Lipscomb 66-61 Sunday afternoon at Diddle Arena.
In a back-and-forth defensive affair that saw ten lead changes, the Hilltopper defense held the Bison to 30 second half points, earning their second win of the season.
Senior guard Don McHenry scored 21 points on 9-19 shooting. It’s his third 20-point performance of the season. Senior forward Babacar Faye added 17 points and nine rebounds and senior guard Enoch Kalambay added 11 points and 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. WKU outrebounded Lipscomb 45-41 in the game and held the Bison to just 5-31 shooting from the three point line in the game.
Both teams shot 11-30 from the field, a 36.7% mark in the first half. Lipscomb shot 3-15 from beyond the arc while WKU shot 3-13. Both teams had eight turnovers each, but WKU won the steals advantage 7-6. McHenry had 11 points in the half while Babacar Faye added six points and five rebounds.
WKU shot 39.4% from the field in the second half. McHenry added 10 points and Faye added 11 points and four rebounds. The Hilltopper defense held Lipscomb to 2-16 from beyond the arc in the second half and forced five turnovers. WKU won the second chance points differential 9-6, which made the difference down the stretch of the game.
First Half
WKU won the jump ball and grabbed a quick 6-2 lead at the 18:27 mark of the first half. Lipscomb answered with an 8-3 run to get their first lead of the game. The Bison knocked down five straight field goals to stretch the lead to 23-14 with 9:43 remaining.
With 3:48 left in the first half, the teams stood at a 2:47 scoring drought for WKU and a 4:59 drought for Lipscomb. The Hilltoppers could not add to a 6-0 run. Out of a timeout, WKU knocked down two straight three-pointers to retake the lead 26-25 and double their run to 12-0 over 5:34. Despite ending the half on a 2-13 shooting drought, Lipscomb knocked down a couple of free throws to take a 31-30 lead into the halftime break.
Second Half
Consecutive McHenry baskets got WKU started in the second half, going up 35-31 at the 16:49 mark. The Bison responded with a 9-2 run to take the lead with 9:05 left in the game. The Hilloppers then went on a 10-2 run to go up 55-48.
A Lipscomb three cut the lead to two with 1:47 remaining. A driving layup by McHenry with 27 seconds remaining put WKU up 64-59. WKU got free on the inbound following a Lipscomb layup, where Faye was fouled and sent to the line. He made both free throws to put WKU up 66-61. Lipscomb missed the following three point shot, and WKU sealed the victory 66-61.
WKU will look to make it three wins in a row Wednesday, Nov. 20 at Diddle Arena against Jackson State.
Sports Reporter Michael Givner Jr. can be reached at [email protected].
