Jim Mashek

HILLTOPPERS WIN THIRD STRAIGHT, PLAY HOST TO FAU ON MONDAY

Phil Cunningham and Western Kentucky men’s basketball coach Rick Stansbury go back a ways.

On the sideline at Mississippi State.

During Cunningham’s six years as the head coach at Troy University, when Stansbury had taken a brief retiirement before resurfacing as an assistant coach and lead recruiter at Texas A&M.

And then, nearly four years ago, when Stansbury and Cunningham got back together in Bowling Green, in Stansbury’s fourth season as the head coach on The Hill.

The Hilltoppers fielded a team of considerable promise just two or three months ago, at which point Stansbury said, “I don’t like this team, I LOVE this team …”

So when Stansbury was sidelined by an undisclosed illness, nearly one month ago, Cunningham had to find a way to stop the bleeding, to get Western back on the right track in time for Conference USA competition.

He wasn’t an overnight success.

The Hilltoppers dropped five straight games, two against Power Five squads — Louisville and South Carolina — and then three against Conference USA opponents — and the season was hanging by a thread.

Cunningham has been able to pretty much right the ship, however, and on Saturday night, the Hilltoppers won their third consecutive game, a gritty 70-59 victory over visiting Florida International University before a paid crowd of 4, 703 at WKU’s E.A. Diddle Arena.

It’s still uncertain when Stansbury will be back on the sideline, but he’s had definitely had a hand in the Hilltoppers’ resurgence. Western improved to 11-6 overall and 3-3 in Conference USA, and the ‘Toppers will play host to league leading Florida Atlantic on Monday at 6 p.m.

Florida Atlantic will check in at 16-1 overall and 6-0 in C-USA play. The Owls squeezed past North Texas, 66-62, on Saturday afternoon in Boca Raton, Florida.

Cunningham, Stansbury and his players were certainly aware of that development.

“This team could come in, in the (AP) Top 25,” Cunningham said. “(Stansbury) is definitely feeling better … I talk to him all the time.

“They play with a loose and free mentality. They’re from the beach, right? They’ve kind of got the beach mentality. Like, they won’t be uptight because we’ve got a big crowd in here Monday night. They won’t be uptight, you can count on that.

“They’re going to be loose and free and firing it up and kicking it, playing like they play.”

And the Hilltoppers appear ready to take on the challenge.

With 7-foot-5 senior center Jamarion Sharp working under the basket, and backcourt players such as Dayvion McKnight, Luke Frampton and now Khristian Lander making it happen on the perimeter, Western Kentucky seems to have found its identity.

“Sometimes, you’ve just got to find a way to win, especially in conference play,” Cunningham said. “We knew how good FIU’s players were. They’ve got a talented roster.

“We found a way to break through tonight, particularly defensively. It was a great finish, and we needed that going to Monday night and FAU.”

There were nine lead changes, and eight ties, in Saturday night’s tilt against Florida International. The Hilltoppers were effective defensively, particularly against the Panthers’ scoring leader, freshman guard Arturo Dean. Western limited FIU to 35.5 percent shooting, including a 6-for-23 performance (26.1 percent) from the 3-point line.

Meanwhile, the Hilltoppers did what Cunningham had in mind at the offensive end of the floor, too. Outside some occasional shot selection struggles, the Hilltoppers shot nearly 47 percent from the field, including a 45-percent clip from 3-point range, while hitting 15 of 19 free throws (78.9 percent).

All points of emphasis beforehand, for Phil Cunningham and the Hilltoppers coaching staff.

“We did a good job, on the 3-point line, defensively,” Cunningham said. “That can be the difference between winning and losing … The 3-point line, shooting, 3-point defense and getting to the free-throw line.

“We had to seize the opportunity.”

That’s what the Hilltoppers have done, but a more imposing challenge is on the horizon.

Dayvion McKnight, WKU’s sturdy guard from Shelbyville, Kentucky, had his typical game on Saturday night.

The 6-foot-2 junior played a game-high 35 minutes, 30 seconds and hit 6 of 14 shots — including both of his 3-point attempts — while finishing with 14 points, five rebounds and four assists.

With WKU sharpshooter Emmanuel Akot sidelined because of a head injury, the Hilltoppers’ Khristian Lander stepped to the fore, making his first start at Western. Lander had eight points, two rebounds, two assists and plenty of energy in 24-plus minutes.

“It feels great, being my first career start,” said Lander, a 6-foot-2 junior from Evansville, Indiana. “It was exciting.”

Senior WKU forward Jairus Hamilton finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, and the 7-foot-5 Jamarion Sharp added five points, a game-high 10 rebounds and three blocked shots. Steady senior guard Luke Frampton had 10 points, four rebounds and three assists, and before the game, the 6-foot-5 sixth-year senior from Poca, West Virginia, was honored for joining the Hilltoppers’ 1,000-point club.

“I told Luke, before the game, that I’d love the opportunity to recognize him with that award,” WKU’s Phil Cunningham said with a smile. “As a coach, you’re always looking ahead, and how are you going to replace a Luke Frampton, and what he does, on the court. Do you know what it’s like, for a game like Luke, to take all those charges?

“We always say, ‘Sacrifice your body, for the team’ … If there’s a loose ball, I can promise you No. 14 (Frampton) will be the first guy on the floor.”

FIU’s Arturo Dean led the Panthers with 18 points, nine rebounds and five steals, and teammates Nick Guadarrama and Mohammed Sanogo each finished with 10 points.

Jordan Rawls and Tyrone Marshall gave the Hilltoppers significant lift off the bench, with Rawls scoring 11 points with four rebounds and the 6-foot-7 Marshall coming through with five points, six rebounds and four blocked shots, in just 20-plus minutes.

WKU senior forward Jairus Hamilton said the large crowd on hand “carried us to the finish line, and we appreciate that,” adding that the Hilltoppers have started to establish an identity by putting their five-game losing streak in the rear-view mirror.

“I think our focus, and our concentration, has gotten better,” Hamilton said. “We’ve got a bunch of warriors. We knew (Florida International) liked to go with the pick-and-roll, and get it out to the shooter, at the 3-point line …

“We kind of had the same five (players) out there, for a little while … We got a little sluggish out there, making bad passes and everything. We just picked it up, realized the intensity of the game and how close the game was.

“We went out there and hit a big shot, got some big stops. That’s what we’ve got to keep focusing on, and that’s what we did tonight.”