WKU Hilltopper Basketball is tied for the Conference USA lead at 4-0 as it heads to Charlotte for a 6 p.m. CT Saturday contest in Charlotte, N.C.
The Hilltoppers, who won 75-68 at Old Dominion on Thursday, are trying to improve to 5-0 in league play for the 13th time in program history, the first since 2014-15 and just the fourth since 1970.
Charlotte has lost eight of its last 10 but owns a road win over North Texas. WKU leads the all-time series 17-10 but has dropped two straight in Charlotte.
WKU head coach Rick Stansbury is 3-2 in his career against the 49ers.
GAME 18
WKU (12-5, 4-0 C-USA) at Charlotte (5-10, 1-3 C-USA)
January 13, 2018 | 6 p.m. CT
Charlotte, N.C. | Halton Arena
BROADCAST
Listen: Hilltopper IMG Sports Network (WKLX 100.7 FM flagship), WKUSports.tv (free), TuneIn Radio (free) (Randy Lee, pxp | Hal Schmitt, analysis)
Watch: Fox College Sports Central, WKU PBS, WBNA (Radio Simulcast)
Live Stats: Charlotte Stats
QUICK SHOTS
• WKU has made at least one 3-pointer in 955 consecutive games, dating back to March 15, 1987. The 3-point shot was instituted prior to the 1986-87 season. The Hilltoppers’ streak is the sixth-longest in the nation behind Kentucky, UNLV, Vanderbilt, Duke and Arkansas.
• WKU has trailed for just a combined 6 minutes and 43 seconds in its four opening Conference USA wins.
• WKU has won three straight true road games in a season for the first time since winning at Ole Miss, Florida Atlantic and FIU consecutively in the 2014-15 campaign.
• WKU’s current scoring average of 79.4 points per game would be the program’s highest since 1994-95.
• WKU ranks 12th in the country in field goal percentage and first in Conference USA at 50.6 percent. That percentage would rank fourth for a single season in program history.
• WKU ranks 17th in the country in 3-point percentage and first in Conference USA at 41.2 percent. That percentage would be the best for a single season in program history.
• WKU has outscored its opponents 708-492 in the paint this season.
• The Hilltoppers’ five losses have come by a total of 22 points – an average of 4.4 points per game.
• In his last 14 games, Darius Thompson has 75 combined assists and just 21 turnovers. He has at least four assists in 14 of 17 games this season and ranks second in C-USA in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.7-to-1.
• Darius Thompson ranks 25th in the country in minutes per game (36.7) and 36th in total minutes (624).
• In the last two games, Darius Thompson and Justin Johnson have scored a combined 109 points and made a combined 16 of 22 3-pointers.
• Through 17 games, Lamonte Bearden has 28 steals. No Hilltopper had more than 28 steals all last year.
• Lamonte Bearden is 113 points from reaching 1,000 for his career across his time at Buffalo and WKU.
• As of Friday, Justin Johnson was ranked ninth among active NCAA players for career rebounds and tied for 10th in career double-doubles. He’s one of just five active NCAA players with at least 1,300 career points and 800 rebounds.
• Justin Johnson is ranked 17th on WKU’s all-time scoring list with 1,360 career points. He needs 151 points to pass Art Spoelstra to move into 16th.
• Justin Johnson currently ranks seventh on WKU’s all-time list for career field goal percentage at 55 percent. He’s less than one percentage point from fifth place.
• Justin Johnson needs five rebounds to tie Dwight Smith for 10th on WKU’s all-time career list with 856.
• Justin Johnson needs 149 rebounds to reach 1,000 for his career. That would make him just the fifth player in WKU history with 1,000 career points and 1,000 rebounds, joining Tom Marshall, Art Spoelstra, Ralph Crosthwaite and Jim McDaniels, the last to accomplish the feat in 1971.
LAST GAME AGAINST CHARLOTTE: FEBRUARY 23, 2017
Pancake Thomas scored 23 points for WKU in an 83-77 loss at Charlotte. Jon Davis scored 23 points to lead Charlotte. Justin Johnson added 18 points, nine rebounds and tied a career high with six assists.
MED CENTER HEALTH
The 2017-18 WKU Basketball season is presented by Med Center Health. With The Medical Center at its core, Med Center Health has served Southcentral Kentucky for more than 90 years, and its system of care includes six acute care hospitals, a complete network of immediate to emergency services and services in dozens of specialties. Whether it is emergency treatment for heart attack victims or preventative programs to improve the health of the communities it serves, Med Center Health is committed to providing the highest level of care and service.
How to follow the Hilltoppers: For complete information on WKU Hilltopper Basketball, follow the team’s social media channels, @WKUBasketball on Twitter, @WKUBasketball on Instagram, and WKU Basketball on Facebook.
-@WKUSports-
Zach Greenwell
Associate Director
WKU Athletic Communications/Media Relations
