CHARLOTTE, N.C. – After two stressful months of nonconference play, Western Kentucky enjoyed a drama-free start to its Conference USA schedule.

Jared Savage (13 points) and Jake Ohmer (12) hit four 3-pointers apiece Thursday as the Hilltoppers breezed by Charlotte 68-50 at Halton Arena.

WKU (8-6 overall, 1-0 C-USA) outscored the 49ers (3-9, 0-1) 34-25 in both halves and led by as many 25 points in the league opener for both squads.

The easy win was a change of pace for the Toppers. Each of the last six games WKU played before Thursday were decided by seven points or less, including an 83-76 victory Saturday over then-No. 15 Wisconsin at E.A. Diddle Arena.

Coach Rick Stansbury’s squad is two games over .500 for the first time since starting the year 3-1. The Hilltoppers take a three-game winning streak into a showdown Saturday at C-USA rival Old Dominion.

“It was good for us, the way we came out today and were ready to play, especially in the second half,” said forward Moustapha Diagne, who scored three points off the bench. “Everybody contributed.”

WKU shot 12-of-28 from 3-point range as a team, making its most 3s in a game this season. The guard Ohmer (4-of-7) and guard/forward Savage (4-of-6) led the Tops’ long-range attack.

Center Charles Bassey (11 points) and guard Dalano Banton (10) joined Ohmer and Savage in double-figures. Every other Hilltopper who played Thursday scored between one and seven points.

The game’s circumstances allowed Stansbury to play his bench more than he has all season.

WKU went on a 17-4 run at the beginning of the second half to go up 57-33. Soon after, Stansbury got his reserves some playing time.

Tolu Smith (17), Jeremiah Gambrell (16) and Diagne (13) all set season-highs for minutes played. Ohmer’s 26 minutes were his most since playing 31 on Nov. 6 in a season-opening loss at then-No. 25 Washington.

“I’ve got a bunch of guys who’ve sat over there in tight games that I needed to play,” Stansbury said. “ … You know, maybe some of those minutes they got tonight, maybe that next game, they don’t play but three or four or five minutes. But because of that experience tonight, it helps us in that next game somewhere.”

Thursday marked the second straight game Ohmer has contributed off the bench. The sophomore saw 69 scoreless minutes over WKU’s first six contests this season, then didn’t appear over any of the following six.

Stansbury put Ohmer in Saturday against Wisconsin, and he nailed his first 3-pointer of the season in the win. That confidence carried over to Thursday, when he hit a pair of 3s in both the first and second halves.

Ohmer also grabbed two rebounds, tallied a steal and an assist and didn’t turn the ball over in the victory.

“Last game, I got in and hit one,” the Taylor Mill native Ohmer said. “I’ve just been in the gym working as hard as I can trying to prove myself and get into a rhythm and start playing well.”

Stansbury said he’s seen Ohmer improve his approach after a recent discussion.

“You know, as I told Jake about 2½, three weeks ago, where you are and what you’re doing now is not working,” Stansbury said. “If you’re going to be part of this program, you’ve got to find a way to change your habits and change your work ethic and make us notice you.

“To his credit, that’s why I’m proud of him for it. He’s had some tough things in his life that he’s gotten better from. He had his best semester academically, which I’m proud to talk about.

“All that now has carried over to the court because he’s made us notice him in practice.”

Diagne’s three points Thursday came in just his second appearance of the year and represented his first points scored this season.

Gambrell also tallied his first points of the year, coming on a 3-pointer. The freshman dressed for the first time Dec. 16 after missing the beginning of the season because of a stress fracture in his leg. He played a combined five minutes over two games before Thursday.

“You could tell he was a little iffy at first,” Ohmer said of the Houston native. “But he got comfortable. He hit that first 3 and he started playing well.”

Charlotte guard Jon Davis poured in a game-high 24 points for first-year coach Ron Sanchez’s Charlotte squad. Davis’ teammates contributed only a combined 26 points as they lost a fourth straight game.

The 49ers slowed the game down with a grinding, methodical pace. They limited WKU to a season-low 58 possessions.

The Hilltoppers reacted by shooting 24-of-48 (50 percent) from the floor, 12-of-28 (42.9 percent) from 3-point range and enjoying big advantages in rebounds (35-23) and assists (14-6).

“Half-court sets are about us no matter who we play, whether it’s teams that slow us down or teams that want to get up and down,” the redshirt junior Diagne said. “It’s about us, how we want to play. Tonight, we did it and we just went out and played our game.”

Bearden sits due to coach’s decision

Guard Lamonte Bearden was the only WKU player who dressed Thursday night that didn’t play. Stansbury said that was due to a coach’s decision, as was his absence from the floor Saturday against Wisconsin.

Bearden played only four minutes Dec. 22 in a win over Saint Mary’s as he nursed an ankle injury. Stansbury said the redshirt senior could’ve played against the Badgers and Thursday against the 49ers, but that he chose not to bring him off the bench.

Up next

WKU takes a significant step up in competition Saturday when it visits Old Dominion at 6 p.m. CST in Norfolk, Va. The Monarchs (10-4, 0-1) posted nonconference wins at home over Virginia Commonwealth and at Syracuse but lost their C-USA opener Thursday night against Marshall, 70-67.

The Hilltoppers beat ODU three times last season, including in the C-USA Tournament semifinals.

Notes

Stansbury is 50-34 in his third season at WKU and 343-200 overall in his coaching career. … The Hilltoppers lead their all-time series against Charlotte 20-10 and are 7-8 against the 49ers in Charlotte. … Hollingsworth’s 3-pointer with 19:37 left in the first half stretched WKU’s streak of consecutive games with at least one made 3 to 990 dating back to March 15, 1987. … Forward Matt Horton played two minutes and scored one point. He missed six games last month as he dealt with a bone bruise in his right leg. … Announced attendance at Halton Arena was 3,019.{&end}