Saturday, February 28
Lynchburg, Va.
2:00 PM ET
Liberty University
16-12,10-7CUSA
60
vs
54
Western Kentucky
8-19,4-12CUSA
1
2
3
4
F
Western Ky.
16
18
3
17
54
Liberty
15
11
18
16
60
Avery Mills tallied 13 of her game-high 17 points after halftime to spark Liberty's successful comeback.
Mills Leads Liberty to 60-54 Come-From-Behind Win Over WKU
2/28/2026 8:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty's Avery Mills celebrated her 20th birthday by scoring 13 of her game-high 17 points after halftime, Saturday afternoon at Liberty Arena. Her second-half surge helped the Lady Flames overcome a nine-point first-half deficit to top Western Kentucky, 60-54.
Liberty (16-12, 10-7 CUSA) outscored the Lady Toppers 18-3 in the third quarter on the way to their sixth consecutive victory over WKU and their fifth straight home win. JaKayla Thompson also played a key role, fashioning her first career double-double (10 points, career-high 10 rebounds) and matching her career high of six assists.
Western Kentucky drops to 8-19 overall and 4-12 in CUSA action after seeing its three-game winning streak snapped. The Lady Toppers shot just 33.3 percent (20-of-60) from the field and 28 percent (7-of-25) from long range.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Mills – 17 points, 4-6 3FG; Emmy Stout – 9 points, 9 rebounds; Ify Nwaobi – 8 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks.
Western Kentucky Individuals: Tia Shelling – 13 points, 4 rebounds, 4 steals; Tatum Boettjer – 11 points, 3-8 3FG; Trinity Rowe – 10 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists; Salma Khedr – 9 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists.
Key Team Stats: Liberty ended the contest at 40 percent (20-of-50) field goal shooting and 36.4 percent (8-of-22) from three-point land. Both teams shot well from the foul line, including an 80 percent (12-of-15) clip for the Lady Flames and 87.5 percent (7-of-8) for the Lady Toppers. Liberty enjoyed a 44-27 rebounding advantage and blocked six shots to WKU's two. The visiting Lady Toppers had the upper hand in points off turnovers (13-6), points in the paint (22-18), second chance points (7-5) and bench points (13-12).
Turning Point
WKU knocked down three triples during a 15-3 run to close the opening half, building a 34-26 halftime advantage.
Liberty then outscored the Lady Toppers 18-3 during the third quarter, sparked by Mills (11 points, three triples). Western Kentucky shot just 1-of-14 (7.1 percent) for the decisive frame.
WKU made one last comeback attempt, scoring nine consecutive fourth quarter points to pull within 53-52 on Shelling's fast break layup with 1:54 to play.
Stout answered with a three-point play on Liberty's next possession. The Lady Flames then sealed the win with a trio of blocked shots on the defensive end and four free throws during the final 36 seconds.
Notes and Nuggets
The Lady Flames will play host to Delaware (12-17, 6-11 CUSA) for both teams' regular-season finale on Friday. Seniors Lydie Mwamba and Caroline Shiery will be recognized prior to the 7 p.m. tipoff at Liberty Arena, and the contest will air on ESPN+.
CUSA Championship Ticket Information
Ticket packages for the 2026 CUSA Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are now on sale. Both the Flames and Lady Flames will look to defend their conference tournament titles at Propst Arena in Huntsville, Ala., March 10-14.
Fans can purchase an all-session booklet through the Liberty Ticket Office for $175, a savings of $25. This includes tickets to all nine men's games and all nine women's games throughout the tournament. To purchase tickets and find more information, please visit http://www.libertyflames.com/CUSABasketball.
Students will be able to purchase tickets for the tournaments on a session-to-session basis. These may be purchased at Propst Arena with a valid student ID (of a CUSA school) for half the price of the current day's session.
Liberty (16-12, 10-7 CUSA) outscored the Lady Toppers 18-3 in the third quarter on the way to their sixth consecutive victory over WKU and their fifth straight home win. JaKayla Thompson also played a key role, fashioning her first career double-double (10 points, career-high 10 rebounds) and matching her career high of six assists.
Western Kentucky drops to 8-19 overall and 4-12 in CUSA action after seeing its three-game winning streak snapped. The Lady Toppers shot just 33.3 percent (20-of-60) from the field and 28 percent (7-of-25) from long range.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Mills – 17 points, 4-6 3FG; Emmy Stout – 9 points, 9 rebounds; Ify Nwaobi – 8 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks.
Western Kentucky Individuals: Tia Shelling – 13 points, 4 rebounds, 4 steals; Tatum Boettjer – 11 points, 3-8 3FG; Trinity Rowe – 10 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists; Salma Khedr – 9 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists.
Key Team Stats: Liberty ended the contest at 40 percent (20-of-50) field goal shooting and 36.4 percent (8-of-22) from three-point land. Both teams shot well from the foul line, including an 80 percent (12-of-15) clip for the Lady Flames and 87.5 percent (7-of-8) for the Lady Toppers. Liberty enjoyed a 44-27 rebounding advantage and blocked six shots to WKU's two. The visiting Lady Toppers had the upper hand in points off turnovers (13-6), points in the paint (22-18), second chance points (7-5) and bench points (13-12).
Turning Point
WKU knocked down three triples during a 15-3 run to close the opening half, building a 34-26 halftime advantage.
Liberty then outscored the Lady Toppers 18-3 during the third quarter, sparked by Mills (11 points, three triples). Western Kentucky shot just 1-of-14 (7.1 percent) for the decisive frame.
WKU made one last comeback attempt, scoring nine consecutive fourth quarter points to pull within 53-52 on Shelling's fast break layup with 1:54 to play.
Stout answered with a three-point play on Liberty's next possession. The Lady Flames then sealed the win with a trio of blocked shots on the defensive end and four free throws during the final 36 seconds.
Notes and Nuggets
- Mills made four three-pointers for the second time in as many meetings with WKU this season. Her four triples in Bowling Green on Jan. 22 included the game-winner with 9.1 seconds left in Liberty's 55-53 triumph.
- Mills has now hit 72 three-pointers this season, just four behind the Liberty single-season record of 76 set by current assistant coach Emma Hess in 2023-24.
- Thompson became the sixth different Lady Flame to post a double-double this season and has now scored in double figures in back-to-back contests for the first time in her career.
- Nwaobi's nine rebounds push her season total to 243, putting her one board away from becoming one of the top five freshman rebounders in program history.
- Liberty needed a second-half comeback to defeat WKU at home for the second year in a row. Last season, the Lady Toppers built an early 14-point lead before the Lady Flames rallied to win 74-70.
- Five of the victories during Liberty's six-game winning streak over WKU have come by single digits.
- Liberty has now won 10 or more conference games for 27 straight seasons, a streak which spans three leagues and began in 1999-2000, Carey Green's first season.
- The Lady Flames finished 7-2 in February and are now 28-4 in their last 32 February contests. Liberty allowed just 51.2 ppg for the month.
- Saturday marked the Lady Flames' 50th conference game at Liberty Arena, and Liberty is now 44-6 in those contests.
- Liberty has clinched a top-six seed for the CUSA Women's Basketball Championship, earning a bye into the quarterfinal round.
The Lady Flames will play host to Delaware (12-17, 6-11 CUSA) for both teams' regular-season finale on Friday. Seniors Lydie Mwamba and Caroline Shiery will be recognized prior to the 7 p.m. tipoff at Liberty Arena, and the contest will air on ESPN+.
CUSA Championship Ticket Information
Ticket packages for the 2026 CUSA Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are now on sale. Both the Flames and Lady Flames will look to defend their conference tournament titles at Propst Arena in Huntsville, Ala., March 10-14.
Fans can purchase an all-session booklet through the Liberty Ticket Office for $175, a savings of $25. This includes tickets to all nine men's games and all nine women's games throughout the tournament. To purchase tickets and find more information, please visit http://www.libertyflames.com/CUSABasketball.
Students will be able to purchase tickets for the tournaments on a session-to-session basis. These may be purchased at Propst Arena with a valid student ID (of a CUSA school) for half the price of the current day's session.
Team Stats
WestKy
Lib
FG%
.333
.400
3FG%
.280
.364
FT%
.875
.800
RB
27
44
TO
7
16
STL
8
1
Game Leaders
Pts
17
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
5
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's BasketballG
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