WEST LIBERTY, W. Va. - The Frostburg State Men's Basketball team lost to No. 25 West Liberty in their first game of 2024 by a score of 126-79. 

WLU showed of its fast-paced play early, running out to a 9-0 lead within the first couple minutes. Freshman Logan Lewis broke the ice for FSU with his first basket of the game, where he and freshman Malcolm Day combined for 10 of FSU's first 12 points, making the game 19-12. West Liberty started to heat up from three, adding to their lead with back-to-back triples, stretching the advantage out to 34-16 at the ten minute mark. Junior JayShaun Freeman earned trips to the foul line two possessions in a row and knocked down all four attempts, making the score 36-20, then later added a trey to his first half total. The Hilltoppers responded with a 14-2 run that was stopped by a Lewis three at the 3:10 mark. With just over a minute to go, Day pulled in an offensive rebound and followed it with a hook shot, then senior Jaylon Johnson ended the Bobcat scoring for the period with a made layup after grabbing his own board, with the teams headed to the break with a 72-37 West Liberty lead. 

The Bobcats came out of half still playing fast, with Day scoring the first basket and converting the and-one after a foul. Lewis converted a layup on the next trip down to put him into double figure scoring. Senior Cole Harshman knocked down a three on a feed from Johnson just under five minutes into second half play, as the latter picked up another assist on a kick out, finding senior Sean Brown Jr. for a three, making the score 87-53. Redshirt sophomore Justin Roseme made a three of his own, as at the six minute mark the game stood at 111-66. Lewis continued to play hard late in the game making a layup after a steal and then scoring again after offensive rebound, as the final buzzer went off with a 126-79 Hilltoppers win. 

The Bobcats were led by Day with 22 points on 9-of-17 shooting, setting a new career-high in the scoring column. He and Lewis each pulled in a team-high seven rebounds, with the latter scoring 18 and adding a pair of steals.

With the loss, Frostburg falls to 1-12 on the year, while WLU improves to 10-3. The Bobcats return home on Saturday, January 13, when they play host to Wheeling at 4 p.m. For more information visit frostburgsports.com.