HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- — Trey Simpson had 26 points in sixth-seeded Kennesaw State's 96-87 victory over No. 3 seed Western Kentucky on Thursday night in the Conference USA Tournament.

Kennesaw State (19-13) plays No. 2 seed Sam Houston in the semifinals Friday.

Simpson added five rebounds for the Owls (18-13, 10-10 Conference USA). Frankquon Sherman scored 19 points and added 10 rebounds. RJ Johnson shot 5 of 14 from the field, including 2 for 4 from 3-point range, and went 6 for 10 from the free-throw line to finish with 18 points.

Teagan Moore led the way for the Hilltoppers (18-13, 11-9) with 27 points and seven rebounds. Grant Newell added 17 points and six rebounds for Western Kentucky. LJ Hackman finished with 16 points.

Kennesaw State led Western Kentucky at the half, 46-41, with Simpson (14 points) its high scorer before the break. Simpson's layup with 8:23 left in the second half gave Kennesaw State the lead for good at 74-72.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.