Western Kentucky has a new challenge on its hands: dealing with prosperity.

The Hilltoppers are coming off their best week of the Rick Stansbury era, having scored wins Thursday against then-No. 18 Purdue and Friday against Southern Methodist at the Battle 4 Atlantis. Those victories came after WKU hung tough with then-No. 5 Villanova in its first game at the tournament.

Now WKU (4-2) must refocus after a week’s worth of pats on the backs and bring the same effort Wednesday when it hosts Eastern Kentucky. Tipoff between the Toppers and Colonels (3-3) is set for 7 p.m. at E.A. Diddle Arena, with the game to be streamed by Stadium Live on Facebook.

“It’s such a psychological thing,” coach Rick Stansbury said Tuesday. “That’s probably our challenge. Eastern Kentucky’s a really good team. They’re probably not quite at the level of Purdue or Villanova or SMU.

“But you look around every night and you say, ‘How’d that team beat them?’ It’s because of the mental part of this game. That’s our challenge, that’s our next step, to see how this team responds to it.”

Stansbury has emphasized with his team staying out of “peaks and valleys.”

Part of that is to avoid getting too low and losing confidence after a loss. Just as important is to avoid arrogance after big wins.

WKU played all three games last week in Atlantis as double-digit underdogs. As of Wednesday morning, the Hilltoppers were set to face EKU as an 11-point favorite, per Vegas Insider.

Senior Justin Johnson said he and fellow veterans Dwight Coleby and Darius Thompson have backed up Stansbury’s message about maintaining a consistent approach no matter the predictions or outcomes.

“You can’t get too high and you can’t get too low,” the forward Johnson said. “If you’re going to be successful, it’s a flat line.

“That’s probably a little bit easier for me and some of the older guys, Dwight and Darius, because they’ve played at a high level. We just try to enforce that in our locker room right now, that we’ve got another big one coming up because it’s the next game.”

Johnson and walk-on guard Tyler Miller are the only 2017-18 Tops who were on the active roster last year when WKU faced Eastern Kentucky. It was a long night in Richmond for the Hilltoppers.

The Colonels nailed 13 3-pointers, outscored WKU 33-4 in bench points and led by as many as 24 in the second half. EKU went on to win that Nov. 30, 2016, matchup 78-59.

The Colonels’ victory was their first against the Toppers since 1987, snapping a 13-game WKU win streak in the series.

The Hilltoppers feature a different roster this season that’s more talented and seems to have clicked more than last year’s squad ever did.

“We went in there not ready to play and they exposed us,” Johnson said of the 2016-17 loss to Eastern Kentucky. “It’s a different team and I think we’ll be ready to play tomorrow night.”

The Hilltoppers look to avoid resting on their Battle 4 Atlantis accomplishments, but WKU’s performance in the Bahamas has given the team a healthy dose of confidence early in the season.

The forward Coleby secured double-doubles against both Villanova and SMU. The guard Thompson posted 11 assists against three turnovers over the three games. Johnson played admirably against Purdue’s 7-foot-2 center Isaac Haas, driving against him for a key basket in the final 30 seconds of that win.

Guard Lamonte Bearden played poorly against Villanova, but two nights later against SMU finished with 14 points, six assists and five steals. Freshmen Taveion Hollingsworth and Marek Nelson were both spark plugs at different points throughout the week.

And freshman guard Jake Ohmer became an unlikely star of the tournament. He scored 15 points in the upset of Purdue, then hit the game-winning 3-pointer in the final five seconds against SMU.

Ohmer has consistently improved since the day he stepped on campus, especially defensively, Stansbury said.

“Now I’m still hoarse from back early this season because of Jake, and Jake knows that,” Stansbury said of the newly crowned Conference USA Freshman of the Week. “But he’s responded to coaching. He’s responded to some vinegar.

“He’s handled it and gotten better from it. I think he’s probably exceeded everyone’s expectations and if you ask him, probably him too.”

The Tops passed their test last week against a talented Battle 4 Atlantis field. Now they must bring the same fight Wednesday at home against Eastern Kentucky.

“We know we need to keep going forward from here,” Ohmer said. “… We don’t need to look at anybody like they’re below (WKU’s Bahamas opponents). We just need to come out and play how we were.”

Notes

WKU is 13-4 under Stansbury at Diddle Arena. … The Hilltoppers have made at least one made 3-pointer in 944 consecutive games, dating back to March 15, 1987. … According to the most recent Sagarin Ratings, WKU is ranked fifth across Division I in strength of schedule with two games against teams in the top 13 and a 2-1 record against teams in the top 50. The Toppers are also ranked sixth in strength of schedule by Ken Pomeroy. … Forward Justin Johnson ranks 31st on WKU’s all-time scoring list with 1,185 career points. He needs 21 points to pass Michael Fraliex to move into 30th. … The Hilltoppers have made just 99 of 145 free throws through six games, while their opponents have made 59 of 79.

Eastern Kentucky (3-3) at Western Kentucky (4-2)

7 p.m., E.A. Diddle Arena, Bowling Green

Probable starters

Eastern Kentucky

Peyton Broughton, g/w, 6-5, fr. (8.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg); Nick Mayo, f, 6-9, jr. (19.8 ppg, 8.3 rpg); Dedric Boyd, g, 6-4, fr. (16.2 ppg, 5 rpg); DeAndre Dishman, f, 6-6, so. (12.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg); Jackson Davis, f, 6-8, r-jr. (5.2 ppg, 4.7 rpg)

Western Kentucky

Lamonte Bearden, g, 6-3, r-jr. (11.5 ppg, 3.3 apg); Dwight Coleby, f, 6-9, g-sr. (12.3 ppg, 7.8 rpg); Justin Johnson, f, 6-7, sr. (10.8 ppg, 9 rpg); Taveion Hollingsworth, g, 6-2, fr. (11.2 ppg, 4 rpg); Darius Thompson, g, 6-4, g-sr. (13.8 ppg, 3.3 apg)

Online stream

Stadium Live on Facebook

Radio

WKLX 100.7-FM

Coaches

Dan McHale (30-39 third year; 30-39 overall), Eastern Kentucky; Rick Stansbury (19-19 second year; 312-185 overall), Western Kentucky

Series record

Western Kentucky leads 112-44 (EKU won last meeting 78-59 on Nov. 30, 2016, in Richmond).

Last time out

Eastern Kentucky beat NAIA school Asbury 99-71 at home Saturday; Western Kentucky beat Southern Methodist 63-61 on Friday in the fifth-place game at the Battle 4 Atlantis.{&end}