Las Vegas, Nev. – The No. 3-ranked West Liberty University men's basketball team suffered their first loss of the season, falling 89-78 to Missouri S&T in the finale of the Las Vegas Holiday Hoops Classic.

The defeat drops the Hilltoppers to 11-1 overall while maintaining their perfect 5-0 record in Mountain East Conference play.

The tightly contested matchup was knotted at 39 at halftime. The second half followed a similar script, with the teams trading leads until the Hilltoppers held a slim 70-69 edge with 6:18 remaining. However, Missouri S&T responded with a decisive 9-0 run to take a 78-70 lead, and West Liberty was unable to recover. The Miners closed the game on a dominant 21-8 run over the final six minutes.

Kyler D'Augustino once again led the way for West Liberty, finishing with 19 points. JJ Harper contributed 13 points, while Finley Woodward and Dante Spadafora added 12 and 11 points, respectively.

The Hilltoppers will now enjoy a holiday break before returning to action on January 8 with a road game against Frostburg State.