BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Following a week off for the second time this conference season, WKU is back on the court Saturday night at 7:00 when it hosts Sun Belt Conference East Division rival South Alabama at E.A. Diddle Arena.

Leverage in the race for Sun Belt Conference Tournament seeding is at stake, as WKU is just two-and-a-half games out of fifth place in the overall conference standings, which would mean a bye in the first round of the tournament.

The Hilltoppers will have their hands full on the glass against the Jaguars, as South Alabama is the conference’s leading rebounding team and features Preseason Player of the Year Augustine Rubit, who leads the league in both scoring and rebounding this season.

After the first of two remaining games against South Alabama, WKU heads back on the road next week to complete a stretch of six-of-eight away from home when it travels to league-leading Middle Tennessee and Troy.

Saturday's game is produced by the Hilltopper Sports Satellite Network and will be televised nationally on Fox College Sports and DirecTV channel 617 and locally in Bowling Green on WKYU-PBS. Randy Lee will be doing the play-by-play with Hal Schmitt providing the expert analysis.

The game will be broadcast on the radio on the Hilltopper IMG Sports Network with Lee and Schmitt on the call. WKUSports.com offers a video webcast, audio streaming and live stats for the game.

Tickets for all WKU men's basketball games in 2011-12 can be purchased online at WKUSports.com or at the WKU Ticket Office in E.A. Diddle Arena. Phone orders can also be placed by calling 1-800-5-BIG RED or 745-5222 locally.

Complete game notes are available at WKUSports.com.

GAME 23

WKU (7-15, 3-6 SBC) vs. South Alabama (12-9, 4-6 SBC)

February 4, 2012 // 7:00 PM (CT)

E.A. Diddle Arena (7,326) // Bowling Green, Ky.

QUICK SHOTS

• The Hilltoppers are 5-0 this season when allowing fewer than 60 points in a game and 2-12 when surrendering 60-79 points.

• WKU, South Alabama and Arkansas State are the only Sun Belt Conference schools with two players in the top-10 in rebounding this season (Gordon, 8th; Fant, 9th).

• The Hilltoppers are in the top-half of 14 of 21 conference statistical categories in league games.

• WKU is 2-6 in its last eight regular-season games versus the Sun Belt Conference East Division, and six of WKU’s last seven regular-season games are against the east.

• WKU is averaging 12.0 assists and 12.3 turnovers in the last six games, compared to 10.7 assists and 16.8 miscues in the first 16 games of the season.

• Jamal Crook is averaging 5.4 assists per game in the last five, which is up from 2.2 assists per game in the five prior to that.

• Since the start of the 2010-11 season, WKU is 14-6 when Jamal Crook has at least four assists and 8-2 when he and Kahlil McDonald combine to dish out at least eight assists.

• Derrick Gordon is one of two Sun Belt Conference freshmen to be averaging at least 12.0 points per game so far this season.

• Through 22 games, WKU has seen just one double-digit rebound game from a player, compared to 19 through 22 games last season.

• WKU has lost 11 of its last 14 games away from home.

THE LAST TIME OUT

Despite a cold shooting night offensively, the Hilltoppers took care of business in the other aspects of the game and earned a 61-51 victory Saturday on the road against FIU in Miami, Fla. The Hilltoppers shot 27.6 percent from the field in the game, but outrebounded FIU by five, including having 16 offensive rebounds, had nine steals and 13 assists on 16 made baskets. Three players were in double figures, led by Jamal Crook’s 12 points. Crook also had seven assists for the second-straight game. T.J. Price and Vinny Zollo each added 11 points, and Kahlil McDonald had nine points thanks in part to six free throws. George Fant had eight points and led WKU with eight rebounds.

HILLTOPPER INDIVIDUAL TRENDS

• Jamal Crook is second on the team in scoring in his 13 starts this season (9.9 ppg).

• Entering this week, Derrick Gordon’s 33.0 minutes per game ranked him in the top-20 nationally among rookies, and his rebounding average of 6.2 had him 22nd.

• Jamal Crook is averaging 10.5 points per game in the last 13 games.

• Jamal Crook has had nine 10-plus point scoring games in his last 13 after entering this season with just one in two previous years.

• A freshman has led WKU in scoring in 13 of the last 14 contests.

• Nigel Snipes has converted on 12-straight free throws.

• Derrick Gordon has played at least 30 minutes in 18 of the last 21 games.

• George Fant has had 12 games of at least six points and six rebounds this season.

• T.J. Price is averaging 9.6 points per game on the road this season and has hit 36.7 of his three-point tries.

• In WKU’s 15 losses in 2011-12, Derrick Gordon, T.J. Price and Jamal Crook have combined for 6.4 turnovers per game.

HILLTOPPER TEAM TRENDS

• The Hilltoppers are first in the Sun Belt Conference in free throw percentage, fourth in turnover and rebounding margin and fifth in scoring in conference games.

• WKU is shooting 77.0 percent from the free throw line (47-for-61) in the final five minutes of conference games.

• After double-digit turnovers in each of the first 15 games of the season, WKU has had just nine in three of the last seven games.

• Derrick Gordon is the only Hilltopper to have started each of the first 22 games of the year.

• The Hilltoppers have used 11 different starting lineups in 22 games played.

• Five different Hilltoppers have missed at least one of the first 22 games of the season due to injury, and three others have been unavailable for games at various points.

• The Hilltoppers have had 16 or fewer turnovers in 11 of the last 15 games.

• WKU has started four freshmen eight times this season (2-6 record when doing so).

• Seven different players have led WKU in scoring this season after four did so in 2010-11.

• WKU has scored 60 or fewer points seven times in 22 games played this season, bettering its total from the entire 2010-11 campaign (6).

• WKU’s 15 losses in 2011-12 have come by an average of 11.3 points, and its seven wins have been by an average of 7.0 per.

• WKU has faced a double-digit deficit at one point in 26 of its last 31 losses dating back to the start of the 2010-11 season.

• In 54 games since the start of the 2010-11 season, WKU has trailed at halftime 32 times (5-27 in those games).

• The Hilltoppers have advanced to the semifinals of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament seven-straight times and in 20 instances in 29 years as a member of conference dating back to 1983.