Western Kentucky (15-4, 8-2) vs. North Texas (12-6, 8-2)
The Super Pit, Denton, Texas; Friday, 8 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Western Kentucky looks for its seventh straight conference win against North Texas. Western Kentucky’s last CUSA loss came against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs 63-58 on Jan. 9. North Texas is coming off a 68-56 road win over Southern Miss in its most recent game.
SENIOR STUDS: North Texas has relied heavily on its seniors this year. Javion Hamlet, Zachary Simmons, James Reese, Thomas Bell and Mardrez McBride have collectively accounted for 71 percent of the team’s scoring this year and 74 percent of all Mean Green points over the last five games.
DEFENSIVE IMPROVEMENTS: The Hilltoppers have given up just 66.1 points per game across 10 conference games, an improvement from the 73.1 per game they gave up in non-conference play.CLUTCH CHARLES: Charles Bassey has connected on 33.3 percent of the 33 3-pointers he’s attempted and has made 5 of 9 over the last five games. He’s also made 74.6 percent of his free throws this season.
STREAK STATS: Western Kentucky has won its last three road games, scoring 73 points, while allowing 62 per game.
ASSIST-TO-FG RATIO: The Hilltoppers have recently converted buckets via assists more often than the Mean Green. North Texas has an assist on 31 of 68 field goals (45.6 percent) over its past three games while Western Kentucky has assists on 57 of 88 field goals (64.8 percent) during its past three games.
DID YOU KNOW: Western Kentucky has attempted the second-most free throws among all CUSA teams. The Hilltoppers have averaged 20.2 free throws per game.
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