Courtesy of LA Tech Athletic Communications
Louisiana Tech overcame a 15-point deficit to take the lead with one minute left, but WKU capitalized on trips to the free throw line as the Bulldogs fell 66-61 in a hard-fought battle Sunday afternoon inside E.A. Diddle Arena.
“We fought in the second half,” said Tech head coach Talvin Hester. “We were down not because of them but because of us. We cleaned up the mistakes we were making and got back into the game. We rebounded the ball well, crashing the offensive glass. When we started sharing the ball and getting downhill, we were scoring the ball in the paint. When we pushed with pace, we got some easy baskets. We just must be better at the free throw line. We were atrocious there.”
LA Tech (8-6, 1-2 CUSA) was seeing déjà vu as WKU (9-5, 2-1 CUSA) drained nine three-pointers in the first half, just as its Friday opponent Middle Tennessee did. The result was a 37-25 halftime deficit.
However, the Bulldogs rediscovered their defense in the second half, completely shutting down a Hilltopper offense that was coming off a 102-point effort.
With LA Tech trailing 42-27 early in the second stanza, they allowed just nine points over a stretch of 13 minutes to claw back into the contest. Back-to-back slams by Melian Martinez as well as back-to-back mid-range jumpers by Avery Thomas II helped the cause on offense.
As did a drained three-pointer by AJ Bates in front of the team’s bench, slicing the deficit down to two. The next play on the defensive end, Bates secured a steal, which led to Thomas II scoring the bucket plus the foul to tie things up for the very first time at 51-51 with 5:55 still to play.
Thomas II missed the free throw to try to give LA Tech its first lead of the contest, as did Scooter Williams who was not able to connect on a pair of attempts. Despite going just 9-of-19 from the foul line, the Bulldogs was still within striking distance of snatching the lead.
It finally did so with 59.7 seconds left when Williams found Martinez in the paint for a soft floater to make it 61-60 in favor of the Bulldogs. On the ensuing play, the officials whistled Bates for a touch foul more than 40 feet away from the basket.
WKU’s Ryan Myers sank both, giving the Hilltoppers the lead right back. LA Tech would go 0-of-3 from the field in the final minute while the home team sank six straight free throws (went 20-of-25 from the charity stripe) as part of a 6-0 run to close the game out.
“The last two looks were supposed to be drives to the basket,” said Hester. “It did not happen. Those are learning experiences for this team. We will grow from it. I was proud of how we fought in this road game. This is what fighting on the road is supposed to look like.”
Bates led the Bulldogs with 13 points, followed by a career high 12 points from Martinez and 10 by Williams. Kaden Cooper just missed out on a double-double with eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds.
Tech will host Liberty Thursday.
