PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas – Western Kentucky freshman guard Jake Ohmer hit a 3-pointer with 4.5 seconds left to help Western Kentucky beat SMU 63-61 in Friday’s fifth-place game at the Battle 4 Atlantis.

Ohmer’s 3 capped a comeback from 10 down in the final 10:22 for the Hilltoppers (4-2), who went 2-1 in the tournament including Thursday’s 77-73 upset win over No. 18 Purdue.

“There’s some things about Jake Ohmer that I’m going to pull my hair out a little bit about,” WKU coach Rick Stansbury said on his postgame radio show. “… But there’s one thing I will never, ever question about him – he can make shots, and don’t give him a crack.”

The Mustangs (5-2) had a final chance after a timeout, with Ben Emelogu taking an inbounds pass and racing up the court to launch a long, leaning 3-pointer.

The shot bounced off the rim at the horn.

Lamonte Bearden scored 12 of his 14 points after halftime for WKU, which shot 46 percent and scored 15 points off turnovers. The Hilltoppers were coming off the win over Purdue in Thursday’s consolation bracket after an opening-round loss to No. 5 Villanova. Bearden also led the Tops with six assists in the win.

Ethan Chargois scored 21 points for SMU, which upset No. 2 Arizona on Thursday night after an opening-round loss to Northern Iowa.

Down 29-24 at the half, WKU trailed by 10 after Chargois hit a 3-pointer with 10:22 to play. Ohmer answered with a 3-pointer on WKU’s ensuing possession, and the Tops stayed within striking distance the rest of the way.

“We knew if we could just find a way to just dig, find a way to keep digging – it really didn’t happen in the first 10 minutes of the second half,” Stansbury said. “We got down 10, and outside that point I gotta change the flow of what we’re doing. I went small.”

A tip-in by SMU’s Jarrey Foster put the Mustangs up 61-57 with 1:18 left, but Bearden answered with a 3-pointer to pull the Tops back within one with 1:03 to go.

The Mustangs worked time off the game clock before missing a jumper, but SMU’s Ben Emelogu grabbed the rebound to force a WKU foul.

Shake Milton missed the front end of a one-plus-one bonus free-throw opportunity and the Tops grabbed the rebound to set up their final offensive possession with 30 seconds to go.

WKU senior Justin Johnson drew a double team and found Ohmer in the corner for the game-winning shot.

Also for the Hilltoppers, Bahamas native Dwight Coleby had another strong performance with 12 points and a team-high 12 rebounds to notch a double-double. Darius Thompson also scored in double digits with 13 points, while Ohmer just missed double digits with nine points after sinking 3 of 6 on 3-point attempts.

“Those kind of situations harden you up as a team, it makes you tough, it gives you some belief,” Stansbury said. “And also what it’s done, which as a coach and player we like, it puts a bull’s-eye on our back a little bit now. We’re not sneaking up on nobody. We like that. Everybody across the country knows now we roll in there, you better be ready to play. We have a chance.”

WKU returns to action Wedneday at home against Eastern Kentucky. Game time is 7 p.m. at E.A. Diddle Arena.