RUSTON – Louisiana Tech's winning streak ended Wednesday night when it lost to WKU by a final score of 81-76 inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Karl Malone Court.
Los Angeles Tech (16-7, 6-2 CUSA), which had won six straight and entered this contest undefeated at home, had trouble dealing with foul trouble, as well as running backs Tahirik Chavez and Tyler Henry. They were also without two regular starters.
The Bulldogs' top two scorers this season, Isaiah Crawford and Daniel Baccio, combined for just 19 points and 14 rebounds. Additionally, both players fouled out, resulting in a total of 10 fouls.
With them in the starting lineup, things went well for the Dogs on both ends of the floor. Dravon Mangum showed off his offense by sinking four 3-pointers in the first seven-plus minutes, giving the home team a 21-9 advantage.
Los Angeles Tech started off suffocated defensively, holding the WKU Conference's top offense (16-7, 5-4 CUSA) to just 22 percent shooting through the first 10 minutes of the first half. However, Crawford and Baccio would have to continue to commit two fouls each for most of the remaining stanzas.
The Hilltoppers took advantage of that advantage, making nine of their last 13 field goal attempts at the end of the second half, including a 12-0 run that saw the visiting team trail 40-37. He helped lead the way into the locker room.
Crawford was immediately whistled for his third foul less than a minute into the second half and was sent to the bench. Meanwhile, WKU continued to expand its lead, building a 53-43 advantage with 15:21 left in the game.
Crawford returned shortly after and went on an 11-0 run to give the Bulldogs a one-point lead. For the next five minutes, the lead sawawed back and forth. However, in the fourth tie at 64-64, the Hilltoppers used a 7-0 burst to regain the lead.
Los Angeles Tech cut the lead to three points multiple times, with Jordan Crawford scoring the Dogs' final five points. The home team eventually had one last chance to tie the game, trailing by three points with 28 seconds left. But Baccio was called for his fifth foul and the Hilltoppers tied the game at the free-throw line, making 23 of 28 on the night.
Mangum (23 points) and Jordan Crawford (25 points) each set career highs in points, Isaiah Crawford added 13 points and Don McHenry led WKU with 20 points.
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Head Coach Talvin Hester
As for losses…
“We have to be better defensively. We conceded 81 points at home. We scored 76 points, which was enough to win the game. It's disappointing to concede 81 points at home. That's a lot. is coming from the free throw line. Our effort to get offensive rebounds and second chance points wasn't what it should have been with a lineup this big. The other thing is Isaiah. “And we've got to get Baccio on the floor and keep them out of foul trouble.”
Regarding the impact of foul trouble…
“That was huge. Isaiah picked up his third point early in the second half and sat him for a long time. Once he gets back on the court, we take the lead. But he didn't attack as much as he wanted. He wasn't able to make a lot of plays. He was plus-13 when he was on the floor.”
About Jordan Crawford…
“They took a dive against Baccio and really denied us a lot of the game, which gave us driving gaps. You can't take everything away. We had Jordan drive gaps to get to the rim. It went well. He was finishing at a high clip. I think he took too many threes, but I thought he did enough offensively.”
Forward Dravon Mangum…
Regarding the loss at home…
“I think it started in practice. It started with us not preparing like we should have and just being a tougher team. Everyone is chasing us, so with that motivation. It’s important to get involved.”
As for his 3-point shot…
“I trusted my job. My teammates trusted me to shoot the ball. I persevered.”
Celebrity
With this loss, WKU takes the all-time lead in the series with 22 wins and 21 losses.
Los Angeles Tech started this season with seven different lineups.
Los Angeles Tech was called for 24 fouls, tied for the most on the season.
The 81 goals conceded were tied for the most by LA Tech this season.
The Bulldogs had seven blocks, marking the 11th time this season they had at least five rejections in a game.
Jordan Crawford scored a career-high 25 points on 11-of-15 shooting from the field (his previous career high was 15 points against the University of Mississippi last season). His 11 field goals are the second-most in a single game by a Bulldog this season.
Dravon Mangum scored a career-high 23 points and tied a career-high with five 3-pointers. He currently has 967 career points.
This marks the second consecutive game for LA Tech that two players have scored 20 or more points.
Isaiah Crawford scored 13 points, moving him to 28th on the all-time scoring list (1,342).
Daniel Baccio grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, marking the 13th time this season he's grabbed 10 or more boards in a game (fourth in a row).
Daniel Baccio became the 17th Bulldog player in program history with 50 or more blocks in a single season.
Sean Newman Jr. had a game-high five assists, marking the 13th time this season he has recorded at least five assists in a game (he has 25 assists in the past four contests).
next
LA Tech will travel to Lynchburg, Virginia to take on Liberty on Saturday, February 10th. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. CT and will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU.
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