Box Score

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BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – The Panther men's basketball team dropped a 68-53 contest at preseason Sun Belt favorite Western Kentucky in front of 4,527 fans at E.A. Diddle Arena. EIU falls to 3-4 on the year.

The Hilltoppers (4-2) connected on 66.7 percent of their field goals (14-for-21) in the second stanza to pull away from the Panthers late after only hitting 37 percent of their shot attempts in the first half. WKU also went 10-for-13 from the free throw line in the second half and finished the game going 16-for-19 from the charity stripe.

Despite the hot shooting Hilltoppers, EIU got within four (49-45) with 7:32 left in the contest on back-to-back free throws by Reggie Smith. WKU would outscore EIU, 19-8, in the closing minutes for the 15-point victory.

The Panthers started the game on an 8-0 run by hitting four of their first five shots and led by as many as nine (16-7) with 11:55 on the clock. WKU bounced back by using a 13-2 run to take its first lead, 20-18, with just over five minutes remaining before intermission. The Hilltoppers took advantage of eight Panther turnovers in the first half, converting the miscues into 10 points as they led 28-24 at halftime.

Smith was the lone Panther in double figures with 16 points on 4-for-9 shooting. The junior guard also went 6-for-10 from the charity stripe. EIU finished the contest going 11-for-17 from the foul line.

Jake Verhagen added nine points as the freshman guard went 3-for-4 from behind the arc. The Panthers finished the game going 6-for-17 from three-point range. EIU also went 18-for-45 from the floor in the loss.

WKU held a 31-24 advantage on the glass with Brandon Harris grabbing a game-high eight rebounds. Keenen Anderson and Josh Piper led EIU with four rebounds each.

George Fant led the Hilltoppers in scoring with 20 points on 7-for-10 shooting while going 6-for-9 from the foul line. T.J. Price also added 13 points, all coming in the second half.

EIU committed 14 turnovers in the game, leading to 21 points off the miscues for the Hilltoppers. WKU also held a 26-18 advantage in points in the paint and a 29-20 advantage in bench scoring.

The Panthers return to action at Western Illinois on Wednesday, Dec. 4 at 7 p.m.