Daytona Beach, Fla. – The No. 6 West Liberty University men's basketball team dropped their final game of the Daytona Beach Shootout, falling to No. 20 Angelo State 101-98 in a ranked match-up. For the second day in a row a scoring run late in the first half forced the Hilltoppers to play from behind and fight their way back from a double digit deficit. The Rams held off multiple scoring runs from the Black & Gold in the final 20 minutes of play, including a 12-2 run where WLU clawed within one point with 8:40 remaining on the clock. With today's result, the Hilltoppers have lost back-to-back games for the first time since 2020-21 when they fell in three consecutive games in January, prior to making a run to the Elite Eight in the postseason.
 
QUICK DETAILS
Final Score: No. 6 West Liberty 98, No. 20 Angelo State 101
Team Records: No. 6 West Liberty 8-3 (4-1 MEC), No. 20 Angelo State 10-1 (5-0 LSC)
Attendance: 221
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Christian Montague opened the game with back-to-back 3-pointers for West Liberty in the first minute and a half, giving them the early 6-0 lead.
• The Hilltoppers were in control the first nine minutes of the game and built a lead as large as nine points at 30-21 with 10:59 to play following a pair of layups by Finley Woodward.
• Angelo State then swung the momentum with an 11-0 scoring run to take their first lead of the game at 32-30 with a pair of free throws with 8:38 remaining in the first half. Montague put an end to the Rams rally with a pair of his own free throws with 7:56 to play in the first. Those shots from the charity stripe sparked a 9-3 scoring run for WLU that saw a 3-pointer by Chaz Hinds put the Hilltoppers back in front 39-35 with 5:47 to play.
• Hinds later knocked down a contested 3-pointer in response to another 6-0 run by ASU, giving WLU a 42-41 advantage with 4:30 left on the clock. That would be West Liberty's final lead of the game as Angelo State ended the half on a 20-7 scoring run to take control. Hinds' 3-pointer was the final made field goal of the half for WLU as they only scored on 7-of-8 shooting from the free throw line in the final four and a half minutes.
• Just like yesterday's game, West Liberty jumped right back within striking distance to start the second half with a 14-5 scoring run cutting the deficit to four points entering the first media timeout of the half. Following the timeout Angelo State momentarily pushed the lead back to seven with another 3-pointer, but another basket from beyond the arc by Hinds made it five straight points for the Hilltoppers as they only trailed by two (70-68) with 14:20 to play in the game.
• The teams continued to trade scoring runs as an 11-2 rally for the Rams extended the lead back to double digits, however Hinds capped a 9-0 run in response to get WLU back within two.
• Zach Rasile extended the scoring run to 12-2 a few possessions later with a 3-pointer that made it only a one point game (83-82) with 8:40 remaining on the clock.
• Angelo State extended their lead back to double digits one final time as a 12-2 scoring run made it 95-84 with 3:49 left in the game. The Hilltoppers, however, had one final charge left, as Rasile sparked the comeback attempt with a 3-pointer off an assist from Montague, cutting the deficit back to single digits. Hinds' layup with 49 seconds left made it seven straight points and brought WLU back within two points again. The Rams, however, did now allow the Hilltoppers an opportunity to take the lead as they were 3-of-4 on free throws and added a dunk breaking out of the press that answered jumpers by Montague and Rasile that made it a one possession game.
• West Liberty shot 34-of-73 (46.6%) from the field, 17-of-44 (38.6%) from 3-point range, and 13-of-16 (81.3%) from the free throw line compared to 31-of-64 (48.4%) from the field, 16-of-25 (64.0%) from 3-point range, and 23-of-27 (85.2%) from the free throw line for Angelo State.
• The Hilltoppers made a season-high 17 3-pointers in today's game, however they also gave up a season-high of 16 3-pointers to the Rams. The teams combined for 20 made shots from beyond the arc in the first half alone with WLU shooting 10-of-24 (41.7%) and ASU shooting 10-of-13 (76.9%).
• The Black & Gold forced a season-low 15 turnovers in the contest, but still won the turnover battle by committing only 11 of their own. WLU held a 19-17 advantage in points off turnovers.
• West Liberty also held the advantage in points in the paint (32-24), second chance points (14-12), and bench points (35-23).
• Rasile led four players in double figures scoring with 21 points while Montague, Hinds, and John Korte added 20, 19, and 15 points respectively.
• Rasile and Montague each notched their second game of 20 or more points this season. Today marked the first time this season that multiple WLU players have scored 20 or more points in the same game, and first time since last season's NCAA Tournament first round game against Pitt-Johnstown.
• WLU had seven players knock down a shot from beyond the arc, led by Rasile and Hinds with five apiece while Montague connected on three from deep.

WEST LIBERTY STATISTICAL LEADERS
Zach Rasile: 21 points, 5-of-7 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
Christian Montague: 20 points, 3-of-6 3-pointers, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals, 1 block
Chaz Hinds: 19 points, 5-of-11 3-pointers, 2 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steal
John Korte: 15 points, 8-of-10 free throws, 4 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steal
 
UP NEXT
West Liberty will next be in action Saturday, December 30, when they welcome former MEC foe UVA Wise to the hilltop. The Hilltoppers and Cavaliers are set for a 1 p.m. tip-off inside the friendly confines of the ASRC.