‘Toppers Advance To Dance

Top 25

Reserve Jeff Rogers scored eight points down the stretch and came up with a loose ball in the final seconds as No. 23 Western Kentucky beat Arkansas-Little Rock 82-79 Tuesday night in the final of the Sun Belt Conference tournament.

Western Kentucky (26-3) earned its third straight NCAA Tournament bid.

Rogers made a tough bank shot from the left side to put the Hilltoppers ahead to stay 70-69 with 4:40 to play. It was the 10th lead change of the second half.

Darius Hall’s block led to Rogers’ layup, which made it 82-76 with 20 seconds left, before Rod Smith hit a 3-pointer with 14 seconds to play for Arkansas-Little Rock.

Little Rock fouled on the inbounds play and Chris Robinson missed two free throws. The Hilltoppers then trapped Derek Fisher 25 feet from the basket and Rogers was there when the ball came out.

Western Kentucky has won 12 straight and 24 of its last 25. Little Rock (17-12), the sixth seed in the conference tournament, lost to the Hilltoppers by two at home and 31 on the road.

Rogers scored 18 while Chris Robinson had 17 and Hall 14. xxxx
CHA-CHA-CHA Schools that have received automatic bids to the NCAA basketball tournament: Florida International, Trans America Athletic Conference Gonzaga, West Coast Conference Mount St. Mary’s, Md., Northeast Conference Murray State, Ohio Valley Conference North Carolina A&T, MidEastern Athletic Conference Old Dominion, Colonial Athletic Association Pennsylvania, Ivy League St. Peter’s, Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Southern Illinois, Missouri Valley Conference Tennessee-Chattanooga, Southern Conference UCLA, Pacific-10 Conference Wisconsin-Green Bay, Midwestern Collegiate Conference Western Kentucky, Sun Belt Conference