BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Western Kentucky held South Alabama scoreless over the final 3:47 and pulled away for a 67-59 Sun Belt Conference men’s basketball victory in a game broadcast nationally on ESPN2.
Orlando Mendez-Valdez led all scorers with 24 points for the Hilltoppers, who improved to 17-7 overall and 11-2 in the Sun Belt to remain in first place in the East Division. South Alabama fell to 13-11 overall and 6-7 in league play, fourth in the East Division.
Back-and-Forth Second Half
Western Kentucky held South Alabama without a point for the first 3:57 of the game and built a 16-8 lead. The Hilltoppers then went 4:04 without scoring, allowing the Jaguars to tie the game, before pulling ahead again late in the half for a 33-26 lead at the break.
South Alabama cut the deficit to two less than two minutes into the second half, and Mendez-Valdez answered with a 3-pointer. The Jaguars took their first lead of the game at the 15:55 mark when Ronald Douglas dunked on a pass from Domonic Tilford, and they stretched the advantage to a game-high five points with 13:46 remaining.
Western Kentucky worked its way back, and the teams traded the lead and tied several times. A Hilltoppers 3-pointer with 3:47 left made it 59-59, the final tie of the game. After a South Alabama timeout, DeAndre Coleman was called for a three-second violation, and the Jaguars did not score again.
Leading Scorers
Mendez-Valdez made 9 of 20 shots, including 6 of 10 from 3-point range, and did not attempt a free throw. A.J. Slaughter and Steffphon Pettigrew each scored 13 for Western Kentucky.
Coleman led South Alabama with 13 points. Brandon Davis, Douglas and Tilford each added 12.
Arrow on National Stage
South Alabama coach Ronnie Arrow said the national television audience saw a competitive league game.
“Fans got to see across the country what the Sun Belt is all about,” Arrow said. “Both teams made a good showing they just got some things done at the end that we didn’t.”
Up Next
South Alabama returns to the Mitchell Center to host Florida International on Thursday, Feb. 12. Tipoff is set for 7:05 p.m.
