# 2004–05 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball team

The 2004–05 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers men's basketball team represented Western Kentucky University during the 2004–05 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Hilltoppers were led by head coach Darrin Horn and All Sun Belt Conference guard, Anthony Winchester. They finished 2nd in the SBC East Division and were invited to the 2005 National Invitation Tournament.
Future NBA player Courtney Lee was SBC Freshman of the Year and was named to the SBC All Tournament team.

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular Season ||||||
| 11/19/2004* | | Tennessee State | W 76–73 $^{OT}$ | 1–0 | E. A. Diddle Arena (6,785) Bowling Green, KY |
| 11/23/2004* | | at Georgia | W 71–61 | 2–0 | Stegeman Coliseum (6,217) Athens, GA |
| 11/27/2004* | | Montana | W 72–46 | 3–0 | E. A. Diddle Arena (4,220) Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/1/2004* | | Southeast Missouri | W 74–53 | 4–0 | E. A. Diddle Arena (3,882) Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/4/2004* | | at Murray State | W 82–72 | 5–0 | CFSB Center (6,612) Murray, KY |
| 12/8/2004* | | Eastern Kentucky | W 75–63 | 6–0 | E. A. Diddle Arena (6,478) Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/11/2004* | | at Evansville | L 62–68 | 6–1 | Roberts Municipal Stadium (9,036) Evansville, IN |
| 12/18/2004* | | Marshall | W 70–54 | 7–1 | E. A. Diddle Arena (4,367) Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/22/2004* | | Kentucky State | W 89–73 | 8–1 | E. A. Diddle Arena (2,462) Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/28/2004* | | at Austin Peay | W 87–80 | 9–1 | Dunn Center (3,300) Clarksville, TN |
| 1/1/2005* | | Fordham | W 80–59 | 10–1 | E. A. Diddle Arena (4,240) Bowling Green, KY |
| 1/5/2005* | | at Virginia | L 79–80 $^{2OT}$ | 10–2 | University Hall (6,675) Charlottesville, VA |
| 1/13/2005 | | at Arkansas–Little Rock | L 66–69 | 10–3 (0-1) | Alltel Arena (3,627) North Little Rock, AR |
| 1/15/2005 | | at Arkansas State | L 90–94 | 10–4 (0-2) | Convocation Center (4,751) Jonesboro, AR |
| 1/20/2005 | | New Orleans | W 81–69 | 11–4 (1-2) | E. A. Diddle Arena (4,418) Bowling Green, KY |
| 1/22/2005 | | South Alabama | W 79–76 $^{OT}$ | 12–4 (2-2) | E. A. Diddle Arena (5,564) Bowling Green, KY |
| 1/27/2005 | | at Louisiana–Lafayette | L 76–91 $^{Vacated}$ | 12–5 (2-3) | Cajundome (5,011) Lafayette, LA |
| 1/29/2005 | | at New Mexico State | W 77–75 | 13–5 (3-3) | Pan American Center (4,571) Las Cruces, NM |
| 02/3/2005 | | at Middle Tennessee | W 61–56 | 14–5 (4-3) | Murphy Center (6,103) Murfreesboro, TN |
| 2/5/2005 | | Arkansas State | W 76–72 | 15–5 (5-3) | E. A. Diddle Arena (6,467) Bowling Green, KY |
| 02/7/2005 | | FIU | W 83–67 | 16–5 (6-3) | E. A. Diddle Arena (3,717) Bowling Green, KY |
| 02/10/2005 | | Denver | W 84–79 | 17–5 (7-3) | E. A. Diddle Arena (4,880) Bowling Green, KY |
| 2/12/2005 | | at North Texas | W 93–92 | 18–5 (8-3) | UNT Coliseum (3,211) Denton, TX |
| 2/17/2005 | | Arkansas–Little Rock | L 53–55 | 18–6 (8-4) | E. A. Diddle Arena (5,053) Bowling Green, KY |
| 2/19/2005* | | Bradley | W 75–60 | 19–6 | E. A. Diddle Arena (6,102) Bowling Green, KY |
| 02/24/2005 | | Middle Tennessee | W 85–83 $^{OT}$ | 20–6 (9-4) | E. A. Diddle Arena (6,455) Bowling Green, KY |
| 2/26/2005 | | at FIU | L 77–79 | 20–7 (9-5) | Ocean Bank Convocation Center (1,019) University Park, FL |
| 2005 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament ||||||
| 03/06/2005 | (2E) | vs. (3W) New Orleans Second Round | W 78–67 | 21–7 | UNT Coliseum (1,724) Denton, TX |
| 03/07/2005 | (2E) | vs. (1W) Denver Semifinals | L 68–77 | 21–8 | UNT Coliseum (805) Denton, TX |
| 2005 National Invitation Tournament ||||||
| 03/16/2005* | | Kent State Opening Round | W 88–80 $^{OT}$ | 22–8 | E. A. Diddle Arena (4,325) Bowling Green, KY |
| 03/19/2005* | | at Wichita State First Round | L 81–84 | 22–9 | Charles Koch Arena (10,478) Wichita, KS |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll Louisiana-Lafayette’s wins were vacated by the NCAA due to the participation of an ineligible player.. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. ||||||