2019–20 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball team

The 2019–20 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers men's basketball team represented Western Kentucky University during the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Hilltoppers were led by head coach Rick Stansbury in his fourth season and played their home games at E. A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, Kentucky as fifth-year members of Conference USA. They finished the season 20–10, 13–5 in C-USA play to finish in a tie for second place. They were set to be the No. 2 seed in the C-USA tournament. However, the C-USA Tournament was canceled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

2019–20 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball
ConferenceConference USA
Record20–10 (13–5 C-USA)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaE. A. Diddle Arena
Seasons
2019–20 Conference USA men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
North Texas144 .7782011 .645
Western Kentucky135 .7222010 .667
Louisiana Tech135 .722228 .733
Charlotte108 .5561613 .552
FIU99 .5001913 .594
Marshall108 .5561715 .531
UAB99 .5001913 .594
Old Dominion99 .5001319 .406
Florida Atlantic810 .4441715 .531
UTSA711 .3891319 .406
UTEP810 .4441715 .531
Rice711 .3891517 .469
Southern Miss513 .278922 .290
Middle Tennessee414 .222823 .258
Note: The 2020 C-USA Tournament was canceled prior to the quarterfinals due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Previous season

The Hilltoppers finished the 2018–19 season with 20–14, 11–7 in C-USA play to finish in second place. They defeated North Texas and Southern Miss to advance to the championship game of the C-USA tournament where they lost to Old Dominion.

Roster

2019–20 WKU Hilltoppers men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G/F2Jared Savage6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)205 lb (93 kg)SrWarren Central HS
Austin Peay
Bowling Green, KY
G3Jordan Rawls6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)165 lb (75 kg)FrHamilton Heights Christian AcademyChattanooga, TN
G4Josh Anderson6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)195 lb (88 kg)JrMadison Preparatory AcademyBaton Rouge, LA
G5Camron Justice6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)185 lb (84 kg)SrKnott County Central HS
Vanderbilt
IUPUI
Hindman, KY
G10Jeremiah Gambrell6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)180 lb (82 kg)RS FrMadison HSHouston, TX
G11Taveion Hollingsworth6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)165 lb (75 kg)JrPaul Laurence Dunbar HSLexington, KY
G12Jackson Harlan6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)190 lb (86 kg)FrClinton County HSAlbany, KY
F14Matt Horton6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)230 lb (104 kg)SrPaul W. Bryant HS
Shelton State CC
Tuscaloosa, AL
G15Patrick Murphy6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)180 lb (82 kg)RS JrIndependence HS
Martin Methodist
Franklin, TN
G21Kenny Cooper6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)190 lb (86 kg)SrFranklin Road Academy
Lipscomb
Nashville, TN
F22Carson Williams6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)230 lb (104 kg)RS JrOwen County HS
Northern Kentucky
Owenton, KY
C23Charles Bassey6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)230 lb (104 kg)SoSt. Anthony Catholic HS
Aspire Academy
Lagos, Nigeria
F50Isaiah Cozart6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)225 lb (102 kg)FrMadison Central HSRichmond, KY
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: October 25, 2019

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV
Rank#Opponent#ResultRecordSite (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Nov 2, 2019*
7:30 pm
Kentucky StateW 85–45 
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
Dec 17, 2019*
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Kentucky Wesleyan
BB&T Classic
W 75–53 
E.A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
Non-conference regular season
Nov 5, 2019*
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Tennessee TechW 76–64 1–0
E.A. Diddle Arena (4,841)
Bowling Green, KY
Nov 9, 2019*
3:00 pm, ESPN3
Austin PeayW 97–75 2–0
E.A. Diddle Arena (4,907)
Bowling Green, KY
Nov 15, 2019*
6:00 pm, ESPN+[1]
at Eastern KentuckyW 79–71 3–0
McBrayer Arena (5,826)
Richmond, KY
Nov 18, 2019*
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Campbellsville
Paradise Jam on-campus game
W 109–66 4–0
E.A. Diddle Arena (4,134)
Bowling Green, KY
Nov 22, 2019*
8:00 pm, FloHoops
vs. Bowling Green
Paradise Jam quarterfinal
L 75–77 4–1
Sports and Fitness Center (1,924)
St. Thomas, USVI
Nov 23, 2019*
5:00 pm, FloHoops
vs. Illinois State
Paradise Jam consolation 2nd round
W 83–69 5–1
Sports and Fitness Center (2,024)
St. Thomas, USVI
Nov 25, 2019*
3:15 pm, FloHoops
vs. Fordham
Paradise Jam 5th place game
W 69–64 6–1
Sports and Fitness Center 
St. Thomas, USVI
Nov 29, 2019*
4:00 pm, CBSSN Facebook
vs. No. 2 LouisvilleL 54–71 6–2
Bridgestone Arena (12,863)
Nashville, TN
Dec 3, 2019*
6:00 pm, ESPN+
at Wright StateL 74–76 6–3
Nutter Center (3,178)
Dayton, OH
Dec 7, 2019*
6:30 pm, CBSSN
ArkansasW 86–79 OT7–3
E.A. Diddle Arena (6,862)
Bowling Green, KY
Dec 21, 2019*
1:00 pm, ESPN+
at Rhode IslandL 82–86 OT7–4
Ryan Center (5,325)
Kington, RI
Dec 28, 2019*
6:30 pm, Stadium
BelmontL 62–79 7–5
E.A. Diddle Arena (5,102)
Bowling Green, KY
C-USA regular season
Jan 2, 2020
6:00 pm, ESPNU
North TexasW 93–84 8–5
(1–0)
E.A. Diddle Arena (3,716)
Bowling Green, KY
Jan 4, 2020
4:00 pm, ESPN3
RiceW 68–61 9–5
(2–0)
E.A. Diddle Arena (4,619)
Bowling Green, KY
Jan 9, 2020
7:00 pm, Stadium
at UABL 62–72 9–6
(2–1)
Bartow Arena (2,305)
Birmingham, AL
Jan 11, 2020
5:00 pm, CBSSN
at Middle TennesseeW 69–53 10–6
(3–1)
Murphy Center (3,176)
Murfreesboro, TN
Jan 16, 2020
7:00 pm, CBSSN
Old DominionW 71–69 11–6
(4–1)
E.A. Diddle Arena (3,816)
Bowling Green, KY
Jan 18, 2020
5:00 pm, ESPN3
CharlotteW 80–63 12–6
(5–1)
E.A. Diddle Arena (4,677)
Bowling Green, KY
Jan 22, 2020
6:00 pm, Stadium Facebook
at MarshallW 64–60 13–6
(6–1)
Cam Henderson Center (5,612)
Huntington, WV
Jan 25, 2020
6:30 pm, Stadium Facebook
MarshallW 91–84 14–6
(7–1)
E.A. Diddle Arena (6,270)
Bowling Green, KY
Jan 30, 2020
6:00 pm, Stadium Facebook
at Florida AtlanticL 65–69 14–7
(7–2)
RoofClaim.com Arena (1,253)
Boca Raton, FL
Feb 1, 2020
11:00 am, Stadium Facebook
at FIUL 76–81 14–8
(7–3)
Ocean Bank Convocation Center (695)
Miami, FL
Feb 6, 2020
8:00 pm, CBSSN
Louisiana TechW 65–54 15–8
(8–3)
E.A. Diddle Arena (5,769)
Bowling Green, KY
Feb 8, 2020
6:30 pm, Stadium Facebook
Southern MissW 75–72 16–8
(9–3)
E.A. Diddle Arena (6,170)
Bowling Green, KY
Feb 13, 2020
8:00 pm, Stadium Facebook
at UTEPW 67–62 17–8
(10–3)
Don Haskins Center (4,504)
El Paso, TX
Feb 15, 2020
2:00 pm, CBSSN Facebook
at UTSAW 77–73 OT18–8
(11–3)
Convocation Center (1,576)
San Antonio, TX
Feb 22, 2020
6:00 pm, CBSSN
CharlotteL 70–72 18–9
(11–4)
E.A. Diddle Arena (5,391)
Bowling Green, KY
Feb 27, 2020
7:00 pm, CBSSN
Louisiana TechW 95–91 OT19–9
(12–4)
E.A. Diddle Arena (5,030)
Bowling Green, KY
Mar 1, 2020
1:00 pm, CBSSN
at North TexasL 72–78 OT19–10
(12–5)
UNT Coliseum (4,471)
Denton, TX
Mar 7, 2020
6:00 pm, CBSSN on Facebook
at FIUW 91–85 20–10
(13–5)
Ocean Bank Convocation Center (1,014)
Miami, FL
Conference USA Tournament
Mar 12, 2020
8:30 pm, Stadium
(2) vs. (7) UAB
Quarterfinals
C-USA Tournament Canceled[2]Ford Center at The Star 
Frisco, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

Source[3]

References