Hilltoppers finish strong to close out BGSU 62-52

Well count this one as a wrong prediction in my book, I expected the Falcons to come in and walk all over the Hilltoppers.

However, quite the contrary happened, as WKU shut down the Falcons main offensive weapon in senior forward Richaun Holmes who, coming into tonight was averaging a rebound shy of a double-double night in and night out, finished with a dull three points on 1-5 from the floor, but kept pace with his season average of nine boards. The Hilltoppers were able to disrupt the offensive flow that Bowling Green State normally has, as the Falcons shot a mere 34.5% from the floor, as well as 61.5% from the free throw line. WKU also forced BGSU to give up 17 possessions due to turnovers, five more than they have averaged their first four games of the season.

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For the Tops, I think tonight displayed the potential effectiveness the big men can be throughout this season. Tonight we saw

make his impact all around the stats sheet, while also being a key contributor to shutting down Holmes. Lawson went 4-4 from both the field and the free throw line, totaling 12 points, and one mean nasty dunk that occurred within the final minute of the ball game.

also had another bright evening, as he lead the Hilltoppers in scoring with 14, grabbed eight rebounds, had three assists, four blocks, and one steal; talk about taking over and being effective.

With both Lawson and Fant having such high contributions to the team, as well as Justin Johnson coming off the bench, we didn’t have to see the guards have a spectacular night. In fact, the main guards in T.J. Price, Chris Harrison-Docks and Trency Jackson each had minor performances compared to usual tonight, and didn’t have good shooting percentages either. Yet, even with their performances, the Hilltoppers still got the win.

That’s what I’m talking about folks, when the big men come together and have an outstanding evening, not so much pressure has to be dumped on the backcourt. Proving why the Hilltopper front court can be so effective, and has the potential to grow even more as the year progresses.

The Hilltoppers as a team had an alright evening overall, shooting 44% from the floor, the normal 65% from the line, a very low 17.6% from behind the arc, and a high amount of turnovers, which totaled 19. More negatives than positives as the team stats go, but when you out hustle a team, you can still get the dub, and that is exactly what we saw tonight.

The Hilltoppers have now captured two straight, and will head to Murray State this weekend to take on the Racers in one of WKU’s longest-running rivalry’s. It should be a fun one folks. The Tops have now won consecutive games for the first time this year, and head into Saturday with an even record of 3-3.