West Liberty, W.Va. – The No. 25 West Liberty University men's basketball team cruised to a convincing 126-79 victory over Frostburg State on Wednesday evening. The Hilltoppers started quick by scoring the first nine points of the game and never looked back as they scored their most points in a first quarter and most points in a game during the 2023-24 season.
 
QUICK DETAILS
Final Score: No. 25 West Liberty 126, Frostburg State 79
Team Records: No. 25 West Liberty 10-3 (5-1 MEC), Frostburg State 1-12 (1-6 MEC)
Attendance: 687
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• West Liberty started quick by scoring the first nine points of the game, which included a pair of baskets from Kyler Daugustino in the first 1:11 of game time.
• After the lead teetered back-and-forth from single digits to double digits, Alek West scored on a layup to spark a 9-0 scoring run that pushed the lead to 28-12 with 11:49 left in the first half.
• Back-to-back 3-pointers from Christian Montague and Zach Rasile capped an 8-0 scoring run that helped the Hilltoppers double up the Bobcats 52-26 with 4:39 till the break. The run would continue to 14-2 as the lead grew to 30 points (58-28).
• Rasile knocked down a 3-pointer in the closing seconds to make it 72-37 at the halftime break, marking the highest scoring first half of the season for WLU.
• Frostburg State scored the first five points of the second half and used an 8-2 scoring run to cut the deficit to 74-45 with 18:16 left in the game.
• A 3-pointer by John Korte off an assist from Dante Spadafora pushed West Liberty over the century mark for the seventh time this season, giving them a 101-58 lead with 10:12 remaining in the game.
• A 3-pointer by Grant Barnhart sparked a 7-0 scoring run, with layups by Daugustino and Darren Fergus. The run helped WLU build their largest lead of the game at 48-points (126-78) with 1:01 left in the game.
• West Liberty shot 49-of-85 (57.6%) from the field, 18-of-41 (43.9%) from 3-point range, and 10-of-16 (62.5%) from the free throw line compared to 28-of-75 (37.3%) from the field, 7-of-24 (29.2%) from 3-point range, and 16-of-22 (72.7%) from the free throw line for Frostburg State.
• The Hilltoppers recorded season-highs of 49 field goals, 18 3-pointers, 35 assists, 72 first half points, and 126 total points.
• WLU saw eight players knock down a shot from beyond the arc, led by Sarson who knocked down five and Montague who connected on four.
• The Hilltoppers saw 11 players dish out an assist, including eight players with three or more. WLU was led by West with six.
• West Liberty held an advantage in points in the paint (58-34), points off turnovers (24-19), second chance points (22-10), and bench points (66-26).
• Sarson led six players in double figures scoring with a season-high of 21 points in the win. 

WEST LIBERTY STATISTICAL LEADERS
Ben Sarson: 21 points, 8-of-10 field goals, 5-of-6 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, 2 steals
Christian Montague: 14 points, 4-of-7 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals
Zach Rasile: 13 points, 3-of-7 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals
Darren Fergus: 13 points, 5-of-8 field goals, 5 rebounds, 4 assists
Lanyc Shuler: 13 points, 6-of-10 field goals, 3 assists
 
POST GAME INTERVIEW (LANYC SHULER, HEAD COACH BEN HOWLETT, AND BEN SARSON)


UP NEXT
West Liberty will hit the road for their first of two straight road games on Saturday afternoon when they visit Fairmont State. The Hilltoppers and Falcons are set for a 4 p.m. tip-off inside Joe Retton Arena.