LYNCHBURG, Va. – A career night from AJ Bates powered Louisiana Tech to one of its biggest wins of the season on Thursday night as the Bulldogs upset first-place Liberty, 76-71, inside Liberty Arena.
 
Bates delivered a spectacular performance, pouring in a career-high 34 points on 13-of-23 shooting, including 6-of-11 from three-point range, while adding four rebounds, four assists, and three steals in a full 40-minute effort.
 
LA Tech (17-13, 10-9 CUSA) never trailed in the contest and controlled the pace from the opening minutes, silencing the home crowd against a Liberty (24-6, 16-3 CUSA) team that entered the night having won the outright regular season title and had only one home loss.
 
The Bulldogs jumped out early thanks to Bates, who caught fire in the first half. The sophomore guard scored 22 points before halftime, helping LA Tech build a 45-40 lead at the break despite Liberty making 10 of its 17 three-point attempts in the opening period.
 
The Flames continued to apply pressure in the second half behind Brett Decker Jr., who finished with 30 points, but the Bulldogs responded with timely baskets and strong rebounding to maintain control.
 
LA Tech's largest lead reached 11 points early in the second half (51-40), and the Bulldogs held the advantage for over 37 minutes of game time.
 
Several Bulldogs provided key support behind Bates. Jaylen Fenner recorded 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds. DJ Dudley added nine points and three assists despite missing much of the game due to injury. Avery Thomas II contributed 12 points and seven rebounds. And Kaden Cooper chipped in four points, six rebounds, and three assists.
 
LA Tech was highly efficient offensively, shooting 52.5 percent from the field while committing just eight turnovers. The Bulldogs also dominated the glass 36-26 and outscored Liberty 32-14 in the paint.
 
Liberty tied the game up at 65-65 with 7:07 to go, but the Bulldogs limited the Flames to just two made field goals the rest of the way while outscoring them 11-6, getting seven of those from Fenner. 
 
QUOTABLES
Head coach Talvin Hester
 
On the win…
"We shot 52 percent from the field in this game and 100 percent from the free throw line even though we did not shoot many.  Those little things help when you are on the road.  I am proud of the team.  We played to our capability tonight.  Now it is time to lock in on the next opponent."
 
On AJ Bates…
"You never see a game like that coming.  It is just one of those things where a play has it going.  You must let him go with it.  I was on him, making sure he was still managing the floor.  He only had one turnover.  It was a special night."
 
On the rebounding…
"I wish we could have gotten a few more rebounds down the stretch, at the end of the day we were able to get it done.  We have to retool and get some rest.  We have another game before we head to the conference tournament."
 
NOTABLES

• With the win, the series is now tied at 3-3 between LA Tech and Liberty.  The Bulldogs snapped their two-game losing streak to the Flames while also picking up their first ever win in Lynchburg (were 0-2).
• LA Tech collected its 10th conference victory.  The Bulldogs have reached double-digit CUSA wins in nine of their 13 seasons in the league.
• LA Tech outrebounded Liberty 36-26.  The Bulldogs have outrebounded 20 of their 30 opponents this season.
• LA Tech improved to 13-1 this season when scoring 70+ points.
• The Bulldogs shot 52.5 percent from the field, marking the ninth time this season they have shot over 50 percent.
• The Bulldogs outscored the Flames, 32-14, in the paint.  It marked the 22nd time this season when LA Tech scored 30+ paint points.  Have done so in 13 of their 19 league games.
• LA Tech committed only eight turnovers, tied for its second fewest this season.
• LA Tech scored 45 points in the first half, its most in a CUSA game this season.
• The Bulldogs registered seven steals, marking the eight straight game they have had at least seven.
• AJ Bates, who played the entire game, scored a career-high 34 points.  It is the most points scored by a Bulldog in a single game this season and the most since Daniel Batcho scored 38 against Mississippi College (Nov. 18, 2024).  It was also the second most points ever scored by a Bulldog in a CUSA game behind only Alex Hamilton's 38 at Marshall in 2016 and the most points scored by a Bulldog in a road game since Kenneth Lofton Jr.'s 36 at NC State in 2021.
• AJ Bates hit a career-high six three-pointers, the most by a Bulldog in a single game this season. 
• Avery Thomas II played the entire 40 minutes, scoring 12 points to go along with seven boards.  He has scored in double figures 13 times this season (eight of the last 12 games).
• Jaylen Fenner reached double-digit points for the third straight contest, scoring 11 points.  He also led the Bulldogs in rebounding with eight boards, his second game this season as LA Tech's top rebounder.
• AJ Bates also dished out four assists, giving him 173 for the season which is now tied for the 10th most in a single season in program history.  He has registered at least four dimes in 24 of the 30 games this season.
• Melian Martinez registered one block, extending his streak of games with at least one rejection to five.  He has 17 blocks over his last five contests.

UP NEXT
LA Tech will close out the regular season on Saturday, March 7 at Delaware.  Tipoff is set for 11 a.m. CT on ESPN+.
 
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