BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Campbellsville held right with Western Kentucky University in the first half but the Hilltoppers ran way with a 109-66 win on Monday night in Diddle Arena.
After hanging around for the first 15 minutes of the game, Western Kentucky University caught fire to end the half and took a 54-41 lead into the break. After that it was all WKU.
With a Campbellsville alumnus, Rick Stansbury, at the helm, WKU was able to handle the Tigers by shooting 61.5 percent. The Hilltoppers were led by redshirt junior Carson Williams who put up a season-high 27 points.
The Tigers were able to battle in the first period after they fought back from a 9-0 deposit to start the game.
After the quick start from WKU, a string of four consecutive makes for the Tigers, brought CU back into the ballgame, 13-9, entering the first media timeout.
Out of the break, the Tigers were able to force three consecutive stops before a
David Simmons triple gave CU their first lead of the night, 16-15.
Richie Mitchell followed the bucket from Simmons to hit his first 3-pointer of the night, as the Tiger lead extended to four -- their largest lead of the night, 19-15.
WKU and CU continued to battle back and forth for the remainder of the half, with the lead changing hands three more times.
Campbellsville captured their final lead of the night, 30-29, on an Edward Jones triple from
Devaunte Robinson with 7:08 to play in the half.
The Tigers fought to stay within striking distance before a 3-point basket from Camron Justice sparked a 14-5 run to close the half with CU trailing 54-41.
The WKU run extended through the remainder of the game as the Hilltoppers continued to pile on with hot shooting, while CU struggled to find the bottom of the net.
With Western Kentucky University adding on nearly each possession, the Tiger offense went in cold, without a made field goal for nearly ten minutes.
In the stretch, the Tigers went 0-15 from the field as the Hilltoppers were able extend their lead to 90-52 before
Justin Tucker, put in a layup for his tenth point of the night.
Over the closing minutes, the Tiger offense picked up with 3-pointers from
Alston Davis,
Sam Weining, and
Max Reyes over the final six minutes of play.
CU struggled from the floor overall in the second half, shooting 24 percent, compared to WKU's 64.5 percent.
Simmons led Campbellsville with 13 points, 10 of which came in the first half. Tucker and Mitchell were also able to notch double figures with 11 a piece.
Campbellsville will be back in action this weekend as they will host the Lou Cunningham Classic on Friday and Saturday. The Tigers will open the classic on Nov. 18 against Indiana University Southeast at 8 p.m. ET and will follow that game with a meeting with Marian University at 4 p.m. ET the following day.
