WKU men’s basketball continues its non-conference slate this weekend and will host historic rival Murray State on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 1 p.m. in Diddle Arena. The matchup will mark the 154th all-time meeting against the Racers in a rivalry series dating back to 1932.
Hilltopper Basketball prepares for Saturday’s tilt facing Murray State standing at 6-3 overall with a 5-1 mark at home and coming off a third straight win following an 84-60 victory over Tennessee State on Tuesday. Khristian Lander led the Tops’ scoring effort in the win, charting 19 points off 5-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Don McHenry added 18 points with a game-high four steals, while Tyrone Marshall Jr. and Babacar Faye each totaled a game-high six rebounds and rounded out the Tops to reach double figures scoring with 12 points and 11 points respectively.
WKU has now secured wins in six of the team’s last seven outings and will look to extend its current three-game winning streak heading into the 154th installment of the team’s second most-played series.
GAME INFO
WKU (6-3) vs. Murray State (6-2, 1-0)
Saturday, Dec. 14 | 1 p.m. CT
E.A. Diddle Arena | Bowling Green, Ky.
Watch: ESPN+ (Reilly McElmeel & Craig McCormick)
Listen: Hilltopper Sports Radio Network | 100.7-FM (WKLX)/Varsity Network (Randy Lee & Hal Schmitt)
Live Stats: Sidearm Stats // StatBroadcast
Tickets: WKUTickets.com | 1-800-5-BIG RED
Game Notes: WKU | MUR
ABOUT THE TOPS
- Don McHenry leads the Hilltoppers in scoring with 15.1 points per outing; the senior guard averages 2.0 assists per game, good for second-most on the team, and touts the eighth best field-goal percentage in CUSA with a .423% mark
- Babacar Faye currently charts as the team’s second-leading scorer and leads the Tops in rebounding, averaging 15.0 points and 7.7 boards per contest; the senior big is also shooting at a team-high .530% clip from the field (min 10 attempts) and ranks fifth in CUSA for rebounding
- Faye holds the conference’s fifth-best free-throw percentage at .808% (42-of-52) off the third-most attempts in the league
- McHenry and Faye currently chart as the seventh and eighth-leading scorers in CUSA respectively
- Faye and Tyrone Marshall Jr. lead the Hilltoppers in blocks with seven each; both players chart top 20 in CUSA for blocks at 14th and 15th respectively
- Marshall leads WKU in defensive rebounding with 53 (5.9/G) on the year, good for fourth-most in CUSA and 69th in the nation, while Faye leads the Tops in offensive rebounding with 24 (2.7/G) on the year, good for fourth-most in CUSA
- As a team, the Hilltoppers rank second in CUSA and 10th in the nation for defensive rebounding with an average of 30.11 per contest
- Freshman Julius Thedford is currently the team’s third-leading scorer averaging 12.2 points per game and leads the team in three-point percentage (min 10 attempts) with a .474% clip from range; Thedford’s .479% mark from the field is good for second on the team (min 10 attempts) and leads the team in made three-pointers with 18
- The Tops rank second in CUSA in steals with 9.33 per contest; McHenry charts fourth in the league in steals and 63rd nationally with a total of 19 on the year (2.1 per contest)
- Jalen Jackson leads the team and charts 15th in CUSA for assists with 2.3 per game
- WKU currently ranks 8th in the nation in adjusted tempo with an average of 72.6 possessions per 40 minutes
- WKU currently leads CUSA with 15.56 fastbreak points per game, good for 28th most in the nation
- The Tops’ 29.67 bench points per game leads CUSA and ranks 50th in the nation
SERIES INFORMATION
WKU holds a 99-54 all-time advantage over Murray State in the teams’ rivalry series dating back to 1932. The Tops stand at 59-13 all-time in meetings against the Racers at home, with the teams’ last matchup in Diddle Arena taking place on Dec. 21, 2013. WKU secured a 71-64 victory in the home outing. The teams previously faced off last season with the Tops posting an 86-81 win on the road in Murray. A win would mark the 100th all-time victory for WKU over Murray State.
SCOUTING THE RACERS
- Murray State enters Saturday’s game coming off a 75-53 win over SEMO last Sunday to improve to 6-2 on the year
- JaCobi Wood led the Racers’ scoring effort with 23 points; the senior guard currently leads the team in scoring with 14.1 points per contest and ranks 37th in the nation in assists with 5.5 per contest
- Wood has posted 20+ points in each of the Racers’ last two outings
- Wood and senior forward Nick Ellington each received preseason All-MVC honors entering 2024-25; the two have started all 110 combined games they’ve been involved in for the Racers
- Terence Harcum leads Murray State in three-pointers with 21 on the year; the senior transfer from Appalachian State currently averages 12.1 points and a team-high 34.8 minutes per contest
AT THE GAME
Saturday will serve as Hilltopper Basketball’s Big Red’s Kids Bash. The event will feature inflatables, games, face painting and a meet and greet with Big Red. Big Red’s Kids Club members will also have the opportunity to participate in a pregame fan tunnel and other in-game promotions, and the 2024 Baby Race will take place at halftime of the game. Registration for this year’s baby race can be found here. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 1-800-5-BIG RED or visit WKUTickets.com.