Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Southern Mississippi*
Ishola, Herd Stymies Southern Miss, 66-53
2/26/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 26, 2006
Southern Miss at Marshall Game Book
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HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Modupe Ishola's sixth double-double helped Marshall close out the 2005-06 regular season with a convincing 66-53 victory over Southern Miss on Sunday at the Cam Henderson Center. The win sealed the No. 5 seed for the Thundering Herd and a date with No. 12 Memphis in next week's Conference USA Women's Basketball Tournament in Dallas.
Ishola ruled the paint in the second half. She scored 12 of her 19 points and grabbed eight of her 12 rebounds in the second frame. For the game, the junior went 6-of-8 from the floor with two blocks and an assist.
Efficient shooting by Ishola contributed to a 71.4 team field goal percentage in the first half, tying its season-best shooting clip in a half (second half at Wright State). The 15-of-21 mark in the first half allowed Marshall to enter halftime up 39-24.
Southern Miss' game-opening 3-pointer gave the Golden Eagles their only lead of the contest. The hot Marshall shooting quickly erased the deficit and sent the Herd on a momentum-changing 17-3 run.
"We played our best basketball of the season in the first half," Marshall coach Royce Chadwick said. "We were very aggressive and shot the ball very well."
Guard Reshundra Smiley was one of four Marshall players that was perfect from the field in the first half. She went 3-for-3 (1-for-1 from 3-point range) for seven first-half points.
Marshall (14-13, 9-7 C-USA) led by as many as 19 points early in the second half, although a field goal slump lasting over 10 minutes made for some anxious moments down the stretch. Ishola's jumper at 13:22 was the last field goal MU would hit until the 2:43 mark, when another jumper by the Herd center fell.
Southern Miss - down 49-31 when the cold streak began - failed to capitalize, pulling within only 11 points when Ishola ended the slump.
The Marshall lead was never in jeopardy, remaining in double figures the entire second half. An Amber Eugene jumper during Marshall's field goal drought pulled the Eagles to within 10 points, 54-44 at 4:07, but the Herd scored the next four points and converted its free throws to seal the game.
Marshall sank only 29.2 percent of its shots in the second half for an overall clip of 48.9 percent. USM shot a season-worst 25 percent from the field (17-of-68) and found a way to lose despite 24 Marshall turnovers that were converted into 24 Golden Eagle points.
"Sunday games are very difficult games," Chadwick said. "When you have to travel like Southern Miss had to, it takes a lot out of you."
Southern Miss (13-14, 10-6) received an outstanding effort from Kendra Reed. The freshman scored a game-high 26 points and pulled down a career-high 12 rebounds. She went 9-of-10 from the free-throw line and eight of her rebounds were on the offensive glass.
Eugene, who was ejected from the team's earlier matchup in Hattiesburg, Miss., recorded a career-high seven steals while backcourt mate Kristin Chaney tied her career-high with six steals. The Golden Eagles posted a 15-2 advantage in steals.
MU's Sikeetha Shepard-Hall and Smiley, a pair of seniors, scored 12 points apiece on Senior Day. Fellow graduates Crystal Champion (7), Michele Hagan (2) and Mary Pat Statler (2) all got in the scoring column on their final game at the Henderson Center. Champion added eight rebounds, two assists and a block and steal.
The Herd will face Memphis in Thursday's first round at the C-USA Championships. Marshall is 2-0 this season against the Tigers, with an average margin of victory of 16.5 points.
"We get to go into the tournament on a high note," Chadwick said. "We had to get a 'W' today to get our focus right going into the tournament."
The winner of that game will face No. 4 Southern Miss in Friday's quarterfinals. Tulsa locked up the C-USA regular season title and No. 1 seed on Friday. The rest of the tournament seedings will be released by C-USA on Sunday evening.
