South Euclid, Ohio – The No. 14 West Liberty University men's basketball team fended off upset minded Notre Dame on Wednesday night inside Murphy Gymnasium as a clutch 3-pointer by Zach Rasile with just 1.5 seconds remaining downed the Falcons 88-87. In a game of momentum swings both squads held double digit leads in the second half, however a 16-5 scoring run in the final 5:07 of game time secured the comeback as Rasile poured in ten points during the rally to lead the charge for the Hilltoppers.
 
QUICK DETAILS
Final Score: No. 14 West Liberty 88, Notre Dame 87
Team Records: No. 14 West Liberty 22-5 (16-3 MEC), Notre Dame 13-13 (8-12 MEC)
Attendance: 500
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Three different players all knocked down a 3-pointer in the opening minutes of the game for West Liberty as they headed into the first media timeout of the game trailing Notre Dame 12-11 with 14:34 to play in the opening half.
• The Falcons led by as many as four in the first half, however a 12-3 scoring run for the Hilltoppers flipped the momentum as Kyler Daugustino capped the run with a layup to give WLU the 28-23 lead with 8:04 left in the first.
• West Liberty led by as many as eight points on two occasions in the first as a layup by Alek West made it a 36-28 ball game and a possession later Finley Woodward added a layup to make it 38-30 with 4:09 to play at the under five media timeout. Out of the timeout Notre Dame scored eight unanswered and went on an 11-2 scoring run to take a 41-40 lead before West knocked down a pair of free throws in the closing seconds to hand WLU a 42-41 advantage at the break.
• A layup and a 3-pointer by Daugustino gave the Hilltoppers the first five points of the second half, however the Falcons responded with five unanswered of their own to remain within a point (47-46) with 18:20 to play in the game.
• An 11-2 scoring run for WLU pushed their lead to double figures for the first time in the contest as a layup by Woodward off an assist from West made it a 58-48 game just over four minutes into the half.
• The back-and-forth action continued as NDC responded with a 10-2 run to get back within two points (60-58) minutes later.
• The Falcons continued their run and outscored the Hilltoppers 22-8 over the next seven and a half minutes as they built a double digit lead of their own (82-72) with just under six minutes to play.
• Rasile started and capped off an 11-0 scoring run for West Liberty that began with him scoring on a layup with 5:07 left on the clock and ended with him knocking down the first of two crucial shots from beyond the arc to put WLU up by one (83-82) with 1:39 remaining. Starting with Rasile's 3-pointer, the lead changed hands six times in the final two minutes.
• After a pair of free throws put Notre Dame in front by two (87-85) with just nine seconds remaining, Rasile capped off the comeback as he sank the game winning 3-pointer from the top of the arc off an assist from West with just 1.5 seconds remaining.
• West Liberty shot 35-of-68 (51.5%) from the field, 12-of-31 (38.7%) from 3-point range, and 6-of-14 (42.9%) from the free throw line compared to 31-of-57 (54.4%) from the field, 8-of-20 (40.0%) from 3-point range, and 17-of-23 (73.9%) from the free throw line for Notre Dame.
• The Hilltoppers held the advantage in points in the paint (44-38), points off turnovers (23-12), and bench points (45-10) while the Falcons held the edge in second chance points (14-13) and fast break points (14-11).
• Seven WLU players knocked down a 3-pointer in the win, led by Rasile and Chaz Hinds who each connected on three from beyond the arc.
• Leading five players in double figures for West Liberty was Rasile and West who scored 15 points apiece. Rasile scored ten of his 15 points in the final five minutes to lead the comeback for WLU.

WEST LIBERTY STATISTICAL LEADERS
Zach Rasile: 15 points, 3 3-pointers, 2 assists, 1 rebound
Alek West: 15 points, 5-of-8 field goals, 3 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steal
Chaz Hinds: 13 points, 3-of-4 3-pointers, 2 rebounds, 1 assist
 
UP NEXT
West Liberty will close the regular season with a game at Wheeling on Saturday, March 2. The Hilltoppers and Cardinals are slated for a 4 p.m. tip-off inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center in Wheeling.