Western Kentucky Hilltoppers @ Liberty Flames
Thedford and Western Kentucky take down Liberty 71-70
LYNCHBURG, Va. -- — Julius Thedford scored 18 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 32.2 seconds left, and Western Kentucky defeated Liberty 71-70 on Thursday night.
Thedford also contributed five rebounds for the Hilltoppers (10-4, 1-0 Conference USA). Tyrone Marshall added 12 points while going 6 of 7 and 0 of 3 from the free-throw line while they also had eight rebounds. Don McHenry shot 4 for 14 (1 for 4 from 3-point range) and 3 of 3 from the free-throw line to finish with 12 points.
Zach Cleveland finished with 18 points, nine rebounds and four assists for the Flames (12-2, 0-1). Liberty also got 17 points and two steals from Kaden Metheny. Owen Aquino also had 12 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. The loss ended a nine-game winning streak for the Flames.
Western Kentucky went into halftime trailing 35-21. Thedford scored a team-high 15 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Game Information
Lynchburg, VA
Referee:Courtney Green
Referee:Jason Deering
Referee:K.B. Burdett Jr.
2025-26 Standings
| Conference USAConference USA | CONF | GB | OVR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty | 17-3 | - | 26-8 |
| Sam Houston | 13-7 | 4 | 22-12 |
| Louisiana Tech | 11-9 | 6 | 20-14 |
| Western Kentucky | 11-9 | 6 | 18-14 |
| Middle Tennessee | 11-9 | 6 | 17-15 |
| Kennesaw State | 10-10 | 7 | 21-14 |
| Jacksonville State | 10-10 | 7 | 15-17 |
| New Mexico State | 8-12 | 9 | 16-16 |
| Missouri State | 8-12 | 9 | 16-18 |
| Florida International | 8-12 | 9 | 15-17 |
| UTEP | 7-13 | 10 | 11-20 |
| Delaware | 6-14 | 11 | 10-21 |
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