Without two of their top scorers, WKU Men’s Basketball continued to struggle offensively at Lousiana Tech Thursday, losing 77-67 to the Bulldogs and dropping to 2-4 in Conference USA play.
Continued shooting woes have plagued the Hilltoppers through conference play, shooting only 21% from three and 33% from the field against the Bulldogs.
Given the lack of depth, the Hilltopper bench wasn’t as involved, scoring only 18 off the bench compared to the Bulldogs’ 32 bench points.
The Hilltoppers contained senior forward Daniel Batcho in the first half, holding him to just four. In the second half, he turned it on scoring 14 in his 18-point effort.
The Hilltoppers got themselves in foul trouble, as the Bulldogs shot 42 free throws, to the Hilltoppers 21. Fortunately, the Bulldogs struggled to capitalize on the fouls, shooting only 29-of-42.
Graduate guard Don McHenry led the Hilltoppers in scoring with 21 points, however he shot only one of seven from three.
First Half
The Hilltoppers took a 6-2 lead into the first media timeout thanks to threes from McHenry and Enoch Kalambay. LA Tech went 0-5 from three and committed three turnovers in the first four minutes.
LA Tech scored four in between media timeouts, cutting the lead to 8-6.
Going into the third media timeout, the Bulldogs led 17-16.
Going into the fourth media timeout the Hilltoppers trailed 26-21. Senior guard Jaylen Dorsey, who averaged just 1.8 minutes per game last season, played three minutes with four minutes left in the half.
Going into halftime – the Bulldogs led 33-28. The Hilltoppers contained star forward Daniel Bactho, limiting him to just four points and one rebound in the half. The Bulldogs bench took over the half with 12 points off the bench compared to just six from WKU’s bench.
Second Half
In a high-scoring first four minutes of the half, the Hilltoppers scored seven to the Bulldogs eight. The Bulldogs led 41-35 at the first media timeout of the half.
WKU brought the LA Tech lead to two going into the second media timeout. WKU stalled out and allowed the Bulldogs to go on a 4-2 run and the Bulldogs led 47-43.
Going into the third media timeout, the Bulldogs led 59-51. The Bulldogs went on a 5-0 run going into the timeout.
The Hilltopper kept the lead to seven going into the fourth media timeout. Kalambay drew two fowls between timeouts resulting in two points and two shots to come after the break.
Going into the final media timeout, the Hilltoppers trailed by four, 71-65.
The Hilltoppers lost to the Bulldogs 77-67.
Sports Reporter Nathan Mueller can be reached at [email protected].