Courtesy of LA Tech Athletic Communications
A career night from AJ Bates powered Louisiana Tech to one of its biggest wins of the season on Thursday night as the Bulldogs upset first-place Liberty, 76-71, inside Liberty Arena.
“We shot 52 percent from the field in this game and 100 percent from the free throw line even though we did not shoot many,” said Tech head coach Talvin Hester. “Those little things help when you are on the road. I am proud of the team. We played to our capability tonight. Now it is time to lock in on the next opponent.”
Bates delivered a spectacular performance, pouring in a career-high 34 points on 13-of-23 shooting, including 6-of-11 from three-point range, while adding four rebounds, four assists, and three steals in a full 40-minute effort.
“You never see a game like that coming,” said Hester on Bates performance. “It is just one of those things where a play has it going. You must let him go with it. I was on him, making sure he was still managing the floor. He only had one turnover. It was a special night.”
LA Tech (17-13, 10-9 CUSA) never trailed in the contest and controlled the pace from the opening minutes, silencing the home crowd against a Liberty (24-6, 16-3 CUSA) team that entered the night having won the outright regular season title and had only one home loss.
The Bulldogs jumped out early thanks to Bates, who caught fire in the first half. The sophomore guard scored 22 points before halftime, helping LA Tech build a 45-40 lead at the break despite Liberty making 10 of its 17 three-point attempts in the opening period.
The Flames continued to apply pressure in the second half behind Brett Decker Jr., who finished with 30 points, but the Bulldogs responded with timely baskets and strong rebounding to maintain control.
LA Tech’s largest lead reached 11 points early in the second half (51-40), and the Bulldogs held the advantage for over 37 minutes of game time.
Several Bulldogs provided key support behind Bates. Jaylen Fenner recorded 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds. DJ Dudley added nine points and three assists despite missing much of the game due to injury. Avery Thomas II contributed 12 points and seven rebounds. And Kaden Cooper chipped in four points, six rebounds, and three assists.
LA Tech was highly efficient offensively, shooting 52.5 percent from the field while committing just eight turnovers. The Bulldogs also dominated the glass 36-26 and outscored Liberty 32-14 in the paint.
Liberty tied the game up at 65-65 with 7:07 to go, but the Bulldogs limited the Flames to just two made field goals the rest of the way while outscoring them 11-6, getting seven of those from Fenner.
