Tops prep for final road swing of regular season
Published 11:00 am Tuesday, March 3, 2026
Western Kentucky men’s basketball coach Hank Plona shouts instructions from the sidelines during the Tops’ 76-67 win over Florida International on March 6 at E.A. Diddle Arena. (GRACE McDOWELL / Daily News)
Western Kentucky picked up a ton of momentum in February, as the Hilltoppers capped off a 6-1 stretch by winning six straight games with the last two being among the most dominant victories of the season.
Now it’s back on the road for WKU (18-11 overall, 11-7 Conference USA), which closes out the regular season with two road games before heading down to the CUSA Men’s Basketball Tournament next week in Huntsville, Alabama.
The Tops, currently third in the CUSA regular-season standings, are the hottest team in the league after lopsided home wins against New Mexico State (93-70) and UTEP (97-65) which came on the heels of a stunningly easy 94-73 road win against current league leader Liberty – it was the Flames’ first conference loss this season.
Since a listless 73-58 loss at Sam Houston on Jan. 24, the Hilltoppers have posted a 7-2 record with both losses during that stretch highly competitive games. WKU coach Hank Plona points to his team getting healthy and getting their minds right with the turnaround since the loss to the Bearkats – the third of four straight losses in January.
“Really, ever since we started rebuilding our mentality after the Sam Houston game, I don’t think we’ve had a bad practice since then,” Plona said. “And so we’re at the point where we just kind of expect it, so we’ll continue to work and obviously focus on us, focus a little bit on Missouri State.
“And know that every game is going to be tough – I know we made these last two maybe look simple. This is not easy. Missouri State, they’ve lost some games in a row by an average of maybe three points a game. And they’ll be playing with real urgency. FIU is as big, strong, athletic and talented as anybody in our league.”
A rematch against Missouri State (13-16, 7-11 CUSA) starts off the final road swing for the Tops. The Bears has lost seven straight games, the last an 86-81 road loss at Sam Houston – currently second in the league standings – on Saturday.
WKU won the first matchup 87-72 on Jan. 14 at E.A. Diddle Arena as redshirt sophomore guard Teagan Moore led four Tops in double-digit scoring with 20 points. Moore, who missed five games later in the season with a head injury, has come back better than ever during this winning stretch.
Moore was named the CUSA Player of the Week on Monday for the second straight time after leading the Tops to a 2-0 week and extending WKU’s winning streak to six.
Moore averaged 23.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists per game on nearly 70% (16-of-23) shooting from the field. In the win over New Mexico State, Moore poured in 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting with seven rebounds and two assists. In Saturday’s 32-point win over UTEP, he totaled 24 points on 8-of-10 shooting and grabbing five boards. Since returning from injury, Moore has posted five straight 20-point outings for an average of 24.6 points per game. WKU is 5-0 since Moore’s return.
Led by Moore’s 18.8 points per game (second in CUSA), the Tops has four players averaging double digits in scoring with Grant Newell (12.7), Ryan Myers (11.2) and Armelo Boone (10.9).
The Bears are led by forward Keith Palek III (18.1 points per game, third in CUSA) and guard Kobi Williams (15.1 ppg).
Thursday’s 7 p.m. game in Springfield, Missouri, will be live streamed on ESPN+.
About Jeff Nations
Sports Editor, Bowling Green Daily News
More by Jeff
