BOX SCORE (PDF)
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Unfortunately for the Morehead State men's basketball team, a hefty first-half run by the host Marshall Thundering Herd spelled trouble, and the Eagles could never fully recover in a 76-64 setback at the Cam Henderson Center Monday.
In the opening half, sophomore guard De'von Cooper scored the first five Eagle points, but then the 'Herd used a 23-2 run to pull ahead 26-7 by the 8:30 mark. The Eagles committed six turnovers in that span and managed just a 1-for-8 effort shooting.
Morehead State fell to 3-6 overall, while Marshall halted a three-game unsuccessful skid and moved to 6-4. Marshall now leads the all-time series 53-47 with tonight marking the 100
th all-time meeting.
"I think we just came out and got shell-shocked. We turned the ball over a ton early on, and you just can't turn the ball over like that and have fast possessions against a team like Marshall," said head coach
Preston Spradlin. "We did prepare our guys for a game like this. Whether they (Marshall) are up by 20 or down by 20, the other team is always in the game because of how fast they play. I thought we posted the ball pretty well, but we just had too many zero and one or two pass possessions."
Junior guard
Jordan Walker finally stopped the scoring drought with a layup and a three-pointer within a 30-second span at the seven-minute mark. Marshall finished the half with a 44-24 advantage.
The Eagles did outscore the hosts 40-32 in the final half, shooting 40 percent (13-of-33) while holding Marshall to just 35 percent (10-of-28). Overall the 'Herd hit 11 three-pointers. In the end, the Eagles turned the ball over 20 times.
Walker tallied his 33
rd career double-figure scoring performance with a team-high 21 points. Senior forward
Lamontray Harris registered his 13
th career double-double with 14 points and grabbing a board with six seconds left to secure his 10
th rebound.
The Eagles will stay on the road this week as they travel to Samford Thursday. Tip-off against the former OVC foe and now Southern Conference opponent is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.
