FAU men’s basketball (15-10, 8-4 C-USA) fell 76-69 on the road at Bowling Green, Ky. against the Western Kentucky University (WKU) Hilltoppers (13-11, 5-6 C-USA) Thursday night. As a result, FAU’s four-game winning streak comes to an end. 

After going down 11-5 over four minutes into the game, the Owls went on a 12-2 run in four minutes to take a 17-13 lead. Sophomore guard Johnell Davis scored seven of FAU’s 12 points, including a three-point shot with 12:13 left.

Once halftime came around, FAU was down 30-27. Despite making five three-pointers to just one from the Hilltoppers, the Owls committed 11 turnovers that allowed multiple opportunities for WKU to take advantage of.

In the second half, the Owls had trouble defending the Hilltoppers’ shot attempts. FAU conceded 14 out of 23 shots to go in the hoop, allowing WKU to have a shooting percentage of 60.9%.

Even though FAU kept the game close in the end, WKU made eight straight free-throws in the last two minutes to pull away with the win. The Owls turned the ball over 16 times, which played a key factor in the loss.

Junior guard Michael Forrest scored a game-high 20 points on 5-12 shooting for the Owls, including 4-9 from beyond the arc. Freshman guard Alijah Martin had 12 points and stole the ball four times, sophomore guard Bryan Greenlee got 10 points and three assists, and Davis finished with nine points and six rebounds for the night.

The Hilltoppers had a balanced offensive performance from four key players. Graduate guard Camron Justice put up 19 points, five rebounds, and four assists, sophomore guard Davion McKnight turned in 18 points and four steals, junior center Jamarion Sharp made seven field-goals while blocking seven shots, and senior forward Jairus Hamilton rounded out with 12 points and eight rebounds.

The Owls take a week off before coming back home to the Burrow at Abessinio Court for an encounter against the University of North Texas on Thursday, Feb. 17, at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Richard Pereira is the Business Manager for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @Rich26Pereira.