Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Senior Night

On February 18th, the seniors of the Hilltopper basketball team played the last game they will ever play at Diddle Arena. On an emotional senior night, Hilltopper star A.J. Slaughter played his best game of the season, putting up 31 points against the visiting South Alabama Jaguars. Also, senior Jeremy Evans made a lay up 1:47 into the game to earn 1,000 career points. Evans is the 44th member to join the WKU 1,000 point club.
The game was exciting, as the Toppers played phenomenal. It was the ideal way the seniors wanted to leave their home court, with a blasting victory of 99-69 over South Alabama. The season is far from over, although the chance to root for the Hilltoppers in their home arena is no longer possible.
With the conclusion of senior night, we must bid farewell to A.J. Slaughter, Anthony Salle, Jeremy Evans and Nemanja Melosevic.

Friday, February 12, 2010

White Out

WKU's white-out game against Houston on February 9th was nothing short of exciting. It was a hard fought battle between the Toppers and the Cougars, although the Toppers came up short in the end.

The score at halftime was 40-33, favoring WKU. The first half concluded with a few high intensity jams on both ends of the court. By the time the second half was nearing its beginning, the energy in Diddle Arena could be felt by everyone. Every single Topper fan in the building was ready to see what the second half would have in store.
Throughout the second half, both teams were basically trading baskets, keeping the game incredibly close. As I glanced around the student section at my fellow peers, I could see the looks of terror, as people realized that the game could end in the opposite teams favor. Students clenched their red towels as the game neared its end, with an incredibly close score.
The last thirty seconds of the game would prove to be quite questionable. With just a second left on the clock and a tied score of 72-72, the Cougars point guard drove in for a last second lay-up. With 2 tenths of a second left, the whistle blew as the Cougar's point guard was supposedly fouled. To add on to the hectic situation, WKU head coach Ken McDonald was issued a technical foul. After the Houston free throws were shot, a Topper player grabbed the rebound and the whistle blew yet again, this time against the Cougars.
Still with 2 tenths of a second left, the Toppers had the chance to try for a miracle play, which of course didn't happen. Despite the unwanted outcome, this was an extremely entertaining basketball game.