Marshall Basketball: Late Rally Falls Short as Does Herd

From Marshall University's Sports Information Staff.

NORFOLK, Va. – In its final regular season road game of its 2013-14 campaign, the Marshall men’s basketball team came up short as a result of a lack-luster shooting performance against Conference USA newcomer Old Dominion by a score of 70-63 on Thursday night at Ted Constant Convocation Center.

With the win, the Monarchs now sit at 14-15 overall and 8-6 in league play this season, while the Thundering Herd drops to 9-20 overall and 3-11 versus C-USA foes. The ODU victory breaks a 4-4 tie in the all-time series between the programs prior to tonight’s contest, which served as meeting number nine.

Both sides struggled offensively early on as the opposing defenses kept the clamps tight to limit good shot opportunities and force turnovers. At the eight-minute media timeout with 7:40 until halftime, the Herd and Monarchs were knotted up at 14 points apiece.

Trailing ODU 21-17, Marshall went on a 9-0 run that spanned 2:50, putting the Herd on top, 26-21 with 3:02 remaining until the half.

At the break, the visiting Herd held serve, 27-25, despite having shot 10-of-26 from the field (38.5 percent). Marshall found great success in clogging the passing lanes with high hands on defense, which led to six Monarch turnovers in the first 20 minutes and four steals by the Herd defense.

Out of the 27 first-half points for Marshall, underclassmen Kareem Canty (Harlem, N.Y.) and Chris Thomas (Denver) combined for 21 of those, with Canty having led the way with 13 in his starting role.

The second half opened with the two teams exchanging buckets before the Monarchs went on a 9-1 run after trailing 30-27 to force a timeout from Marshall coach Tom Herrion with 16:21 to play and ODU leading, 36-31.

ODU continued to battle with Marshall as the Monarchs led 46-37 with 11:40 left in the contest, as the Herd looked to make a run as Thomas and a foul-troubled Ryan Taylor (Indianapolis) reentered the game.

A bucket from ODU’s Dimitri Batten pushed the lead to 14 at the 7:07 mark, setting the biggest lead of the night for the Monarchs as the scoreboard read 56-42. The ODU lead remained of the double-figure variety as with 3:45 left, the Herd trailed, 59-49.

In the waning moments, Marshall cut the deficit to five with the score at 64-59 and 34.0 seconds remaining on a triple from Canty, but not enough time remained for the Herd to successfully complete a comeback as the clock ran out and the Monarchs collected a 70-63 victory. With the seven point defeat, Marshall has now lost 15 games this year by 10 or fewer points

On the night, Marshall went 20-for-54 (37 percent) from the field and 6-of-15 (40 percent) from beyond the arc. Canty finished with a game-high 24 points in 39 minutes on the floor, while Thomas added 17 of his own, paired with seven rebounds.

The Herd will return home for a pair of home games to close out the regular season, starting with a Sunday contest with East Carolina at 2 p.m. on Mar. 2.

Marshall Basketball: Herd Falls Victim to Middle Tennessee by Three

From Marshall University's Sports Information Office.

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – With hopes of snapping Middle Tennessee’s eight-game win streak, the Marshall men’s basketball team once again fell victim to the three ball as a trey with 19 seconds remaining broke a tie and lifted the Blue Raiders to a 56-53 victory on Saturday afternoon at the Cam Henderson Center.

Conference USA leader Middle Tennessee improves to 21-7 overall and 11-2 in its first season as a C-USA member, while the Thundering Herd now sits at 9-19 on the year and 3-10 in league play. The Blue Raiders now lead the all-time series with the Herd, 5-2.

From the opening tip, both sides remained within striking distance as the lead grew no larger than eight points for the entirety of the 40-minute contest.

A sloppy first half consisted of 21 total turnovers with 11 coming from the Blue Raiders with those mistakes resulting in 12 Marshall points. At the break, Middle Tennessee held serve, 27-25, with freshman forward Ryan Taylor (Indianapolis) having shot a perfect 4-for-4 from the field for eight points in nine first-half minutes.

Down the stretch, the two teams traded buckets until the Herd gained a head of steam as a jumper from freshman guard Kareem Canty (Harlem, N.Y.) helped put his side up by a game-high seven points as the score stood at 47-40 with 7:09 to play.

The lead wouldn’t hold for as long as Marshall coach Tom Herrion would have liked as three-straight triples from Middle Tennessee’s Kerry Hammonds took the Blue Raiders from down 49-42, to up 51-49 with 2:56 remaining in regulation. Canty tied the game at 51 just 65 seconds later, before the visitors retook a two-point lead, 53-51.

Canty would once again deliver a basket to tie it up, this time with 54 seconds left on the game clock.

As the shot clock had mere seconds left, Jawawn Raymond knocked down a tough three with 19 seconds remaining, putting his side up 56-53. After calling a timeout with 13 seconds remaining to draw up a play, the Herd was unsuccessful in running the play, leading to a scramble that resulted in a desperation three-point attempt by Canty with three ticks left that fell short, allowing Middle Tennessee to escape with a 56-53 win.

The Herd will take its final road trip of the regular season when it travels to Norfolk, Va. to take on another C-USA newcomer, Old Dominion, on Thursday (Feb. 27) at 7 p.m.

Marshall Football: Brown Leaving for Wisconsin

According to Huntington Herald Dispatch columnist Chuck Landon, Marshall running backs coach Thomas Brown is leaving for the same position at the University of Wisconsin.

Marshall RB coach Thomas Brown is leaving to accept RB job at Wisconsin, per sources
— Chuck Landon (@Chuckonsports) February 21, 2014

Brown joined the Herds coaching staff last offseason after a one year stint as Chattanooga’s running backs coach. For the 2013 season, Marshall ranked 24^th nationally with 205.93 rushing yards per game. The Herd’s ground attack was lead by Essray Taliaferro who rumbled for 1,140 rushing yards on 221 attempts and ten touchdowns.

In terms of recruiting, Brown covered Atlanta and Georgia’s northern region. He was responsible for securing three commitments in Marshall’s 2014 recruiting class, wide receiver Emanuel Beal, running back Keion Davis, and  defensive back Antavis Rowe. 

Marshall Basketball: Herd Falls to UAB 68-62

Stats

Huntington Herald Dispatch

Blazers ‘pummel’ Herd

Chuck Landon: Herd fell short on many front in this loss

HerdZone

BOGACZYK: UAB’s Glass-Cleaning is Herd’s Undoing

Video: Tom Herrion Postgame

Charleston Gazette

UAB’s board work sinks Herd

Charleston Daily Mail

Marshall Basketball: Herd falls to visiting UAB

Marshall Football: Herd gets Commitment from Miami Central Pair

In the world of college football, recruiting never stops. With signing day barley in the review mirror, Marshall added its first two verbal commitments of 2015.

The Herd tapped a familiar south Florida pipe line for a pair of defenders, Miami Central High School. Three players on Marshall's roster are former Miami Central Rockets, quarterback Rakeem Cato, his favorite receiving target Tommy Shuler, and Virginia Tech transfer Donaldven Manning.

The evenings first commitment came from three star defensive end Fermin Silva. After a junior season in which he made 47 tackles and 15 sacks, Silva was named to the All-Dade Football 6A-8A First Team. The 6-foot-1, 215 pound defender also received scholarship offers from South Florida and Appalachian State. Earlier this month The Miami-Herald named him one of areas top 50 football prospects heading into the summer.

Watch Fermin Silva's highlight video

Just verbally committed to Marshall #Herdnation
— SACKMASTER (@DCsilva14) February 18, 2014

Less than a hour later Marquis Couch made his commitment known via Twitter. An outside linebacker for the Rockets, he recorded 51 tackles and 12 sacks during his junior season. With another year of high school football on the horizon, Couch stands six feet, 210 pounds.

Watch Marquis Couch's highlight video

Proud Herd Commit ‼️‼️💯 #HerdNation @DCsilva14
— Marquis Couch (@mc_4pound) February 19, 2014

Marshall Basketball: Herd Downs Charlotte on the Road

From Marshall University's Sports Information Office.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – After falling behind by 11 points early on, the Marshall men’s basketball team kept fighting to battle back and collect a 59-56 victory over Charlotte in Conference USA play on Saturday night at Halton Arena.

With the road victory, the Thundering Herd improves to 9-17 on the year and 3-8 in C-USA play, with the loss dropping the 49ers to 14-10 overall and 5-6 in league play.

As part of league scheduling, Marshall will see Charlotte once again before the regular season concludes, but in Huntington, as the two sides are “rivals” and travel partners, which is accompanied by a home-and-home series.

Coach Tom Herrion went with the starting five of Shawn Smith (Sacramento), Kareem Canty (Harlem, N.Y.), Chris Thomas (Denver), Cheikh Sane (Dakar, Senegal) and Ryan Taylor (Indianapolis) for the third straight game.

At the second media timeout of the game, 10:10 remained until the half and Charlotte led 21-15, while Canty paced the Herd with eight points in just 10 minutes of playing time. The gap widened as the 49ers went up double digits, but 10 straight points from Thomas, including two three-point plays, brought the score to 32-29 with 3:22 left in the half.

With the clock winding down at the end of the first half, Thomas snatched an offensive rebound and banked a layup off the glass to put his side up 36-34 right before the buzzer sounded. The bucket capped a 17-2 run that spanned 7:12 and closed the half for the Herd.

Through the first 20 minutes, 14 points from Thomas and 13 from Canty combined for 27 of Marshall’s 36 first-half points, while Marshall turned eight Charlotte turnovers into 14 points.

The 49ers came out of the locker room re-energized for the second half and jumped back out front, but not for long. Success on the offensive glass allowed the Herd to re-take and extend its lead to a game-high nine points, 50-41, as 12:06 remained.

Charlotte remained cold from the field as the Marshall defense kept its pressure high, allowing the visiting Herd to hold serve, 53-47, with 5:40 to play after a jumper from Canty. Buckets from Canty and Thomas kept a multiple-possession buffer between the two teams as the 49ers looked to trim the margin.

With 1:27 remaining, a dunk from Terrance Williams brought Charlotte within four, but a mid-range jumper from Canty followed, making it 59-53 in favor of the Herd with 53.4 seconds left. Following a Marshall turnover, Shawn Lester knocked down a trey with 19.4 seconds to play, bringing the score to 59-56.

On the ensuing possession, the Herd committed another turnover, this one due to failing to inbound the ball in under five seconds, which gave the ball back to Charlotte with a shot at tying the game. After an initial miss, the 49ers grabbed the rebound to set up another chance at extending the game, but could not connect as the Herd reeled in the miss and ran out the clock to win 59-56.

Marshall finished 40 percent from the field (22-of-55) as Canty finished with a game-high 21 points, followed by 18 from Thomas. Charlotte went 22-for-62 from the field (35.5 percent).

The Herd will return home to the Cam Henderson Center to take on UAB, Feb. 20 at 7 p.m.

Marshall Football: W.V. Natives Join Recruiting Class as Preferred Walk-Ons

While West Virginia is not considered a hot bed of football recruiting, the Mountain State has been good to Marshall. In recent years West Virginia natives Aaron Dobson, Clinton Van Horn, Blake Brooks, and Raheem Waiters have made a big impact for the Thundering Herd.

On national signing day a number of local prospects made a commitment to Marshall as preferred walk-ons. Preferred walk-ons are guaranteed a roster spot but are not on scholarship. 

One of those West Virginia natives is already on campus. Although he comes to Marshall from Virginia's Fork Union Military Academy, Matthew Santer played high school football in Parkersburg W.V. Santer enrolled at Fork Union last August hoping to raise his recruiting profile. The prep school semester helped as Santer caught the eye of Marshall's coaches. He will join the Herds safeties when spring practice begins.

Beckley's Woodrow Wilson High School should be familiar to Thundering Herd fans. Doug Legursky and Van Horn are just two of many former Flying Eagles to play collegiality at Marshall. Chase Hancock hopes to continue that legacy after accepting a preferred walk-on spot with the Herd. As a senior Hancock caught 35 passes for 490 yards and five touchdowns. He also recorded 564 rushing yards on 98 carries and eight touchdowns. 

A member of West Virginia's Class AA all first team, defensive lineman Austin Hill will join the Thundering Herd as a preferred walk-on this fall. Hill had a number of scholarship offers from division II schools, but the 6-foot-2, 280 pound lineman always dreamed of playing big time college football.  

Rounding out the list is athlete Isaiah Brown. One of the fastest football players in West Virginia, Brown accumulated 1,287 yards of total offense during his senior year at Summers County High School. He will test his speed against C-USA competition this fall as a preferred walk-on at Marshall.