SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. – Dalton Bolon scored 20 of his game-high 23 points in the second half here Wednesday to lead No. 8-ranked West Liberty past upset-minded Shepherd, 84-76, in Mountain East Conference action at the Butcher Center.
    It was the ninth straight win and the 16th in the last 17 games for Coach Ben Howlett's Hilltoppers (16-2, 12-1) as they posted their 26th consecutive win against the Rams (10-9, 6-7), who had dropped a 96-94 decision to the Black and Gold in early December at the ASRC.
    The first half ended in a 35-35 deadlock as WLU shot a dismal 32 percent (12-of-37) from the floor while Shepherd went 7-of-14 from the 3-point arc to keep things close.
    West Liberty took the lead for good, 54-51, with 13:32 remaining on a Bolon 3-pointer and the lead reached nine points on several occasions down the stretch.
    The Hilltoppers appeared on the verge of icing the contest when Bolon finished off a conventional 3-point play for a 78-69 lead with just 3:06 to play but the Rams refused to fold.
    Two Winston Burgess free throws cut the margin to 78-76 with 21 seconds remaining but WLU's Luke Dyer swished a pair of free throws to make it a two-possession game.
    Dyer then blocked a 3-point attempt by Thomas Lang at the other end of the court and Bolon knocked down four more free throws in the final 10 seconds to seal the deal.
    The 6-4 Bolon pulled down a career-high 15 rebounds to go along with his 23 points while Yahel Hill and Marlon Moore chipped in with 14 and 12 points, respectively. Senior pivot Eric Meininger just missed a double-double with 9 points and 8 rebounds.
    Derek McKnight paced four double-figure scorers for the hosts with 18 points to go along with a game-high 5 assists.
    West Liberty returns home to host Fairmont State on Saturday in a battle for sole possession of first place in the MEC.
    The game will be nationally televised as part of the NCAA Division II Basketball Showcase with tipoff set for 4:05 p.m. at the ASRC.