MONROE, La. – Senior guard Dynile Forbes scored a game-high 22 points, including the game-winning free throw, as the ULM men’s basketball team earned a 67-66 victory over Western Kentucky on Thursday night (Feb. 4) at Fant-Ewing Coliseum. Junior forward Rudy Turner added 11 points, a game-high eight rebounds and a career-best-tying six blocks. Freshman guard Colby Carr also scored 10 points.
ULM led by 10 at the break, but fell behind by as many as six in the second half before coming back to earn their first-ever win over WKU.
The Warhawks jumped out to a quick 15-8 lead on Forbes’ third triple just five-and-a-half minutes into the contest. ULM started the game 6-of-9 from the field and 3-of-3 from beyond the arc.
WKU cut the ULM lead to three, but the Warhawks were able to push their advantage to nine, 27-18, with just under eight minutes to play in the first half on a put-back by Turner. After a pair of free throws by the Hilltoppers, Forbes made his fifth three-pointer of the contest to push the ULM lead to double-digits, 30-20, with six minutes left in the opening stanza.
The Warhawks took a 10-point lead into the break, 38-28; Forbes led all scorers with 20 points on 6-of-7 shooting, including a perfect 6-of-6 from beyond the arc. Turner added six points and seven rebounds for ULM.
Jeremy Evans led WKU with 12 points in the opening 20 minutes as the Hilltoppers shot 38.5 percent (10-of-26) from the field while ULM went 14-of-28 (50.0 percent) from the floor in the first half.
WKU stormed out of the locker room, scoring the first eight points of the second half to slash the ULM lead to a pair, 38-36, in the first four minutes of the half.
The ULM advantage swung between two and five until back-to-back WKU three-pointers gave the Hilltoppers their first lead of the game, 48-47, with just under 12 minutes remaining. WKU opened the second half shooting 6-of-9 from the field, and also made six free throws, in the opening eight minutes of the half.
The Hilltoppers built a six-point lead, 60-54, before junior forward Lawrence Gilbert scored four consecutive points and Carr made a pair of free throws to bring the Warhawks back even, 60-60, with 3:19 to play.
WKU made back-to-back triples to pull back ahead by six, 66-60, but an old-fashioned three-point play by junior forward Tommie Sykes slashed the Hilltopper lead in half with 1:49 remaining. After empty possessions each way, senior guard Kenneth Averette knotted the contest with a triple from the left wing with 23 seconds to play.
With the Hilltoppers holding for the last shot, Gilbert forced a WKU turnover and found Forbes ahead of the play. Forbes was fouled with 1.9 seconds remaining and split a pair of free throws to put the Warhawks ahead, 67-66.
Following a Hilltopper timeout, WKU’s desperation length-of-the-floor pass was batted away and ULM held on for the victory.
Evans paced WKU with 19 points while AJ Slaughter chipped in 18.
The Warhawks now have a week off before returning to action next Thursday (Feb. 11) at UALR. Game time against the Trojans is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Courtesy: ulmwarhawks.com
