Marshall University Athletics
Women's Basketball To Face Morehead State On Tuesday
11/24/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 24, 2008
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The Thundering Herd women's basketball team will be back in action Tuesday evening, facing Morehead State at 7 p.m. at the Cam Henderson Center.
Marshall, who enters the game with a record of 3-1, is coming off of a hard-fought contest Saturday evening against ULM in the Fifth Third MU Classic championship game. The Herd overcame a deficit of 11 points with eight minutes remaining to tie the game in the final two minutes, but a late three-pointer proved to be the difference as the Warhawks came away with the 69-67 victory.
Tynikki Crook scored 20 points in the game, her second 20-point effort in three games, on her way to All-Tournament honors and C-USA Player of the Week honors. In three games over the week, Crook averaged 18.3 PPG and 7.7 RPG.
Crook was not the only bright spot for MU against the Warhawks. Alyssa Hammond had the second-best scoring output of her career, finishing with 19 points. What was most impressive was her performance from the charity stripe as she connected on 11-of-12 free throws. That was the best individual performance for a Marshall player since Sikeetha Shepard-Hall hit 15-of-16 from the line against UAB three seasons ago.
In Saturday's Fifth Third Classic opener against Tennessee State, the Marshall offense hit on all cylinders, shooting .659 from the field. That marked the first time since a December 2005 meeting against Wright State that the Herd shot above .600 for a full game. Marshall shot .614 in that contest.
Stick Harris was the biggest contributor to that percentage, connecting on seven of eight field goals, including a 3-of-4 performance beyond-the-arc. She led the Herd with a career high 18 points. Crook, Chantelle Handy and Casey Baker also had stellar days from the field, each going 4-5.
One of the strengths thus far for the Herd has been its improved rebounding ability. Through four games last season, Marshall was outrebounded by three boards, but this season has proven to be a different story as the Herd holds a +19 advantage on the boards, a swing of 22 rebounds. Marshall has outrebounded all four of its opponents in 2008-09.
Marshall will look to keep these trends going against the 3-1 Eagles. After falling to Duquesne in the season opener, Morehead State has reeled off three straight wins, including triumphs over Ohio U. and Saint Louis.
MSU has four players averaging double figures, including Tiffanie Stephens and Tiffany Hamilton, who are averaging 15.0 and 14.3 PPG, respectively. Chynna Bozeman, who chipped in 21 points against the Herd last season, is third with 10.8 PPG.
The Herd holds a 23-19 lead in the series against the Eagles and has won six straight. Last seasons meeting may have been the most exciting one as the Herd overcame an 8-point deficit with 40 seconds remaining to force overtime before coming away with an 83-79 win.
Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. and the contest can be heard on 88.1 WMUL or online at http://www.marshall.edu/wmul. The team will have a seven-day layoff before facing UT Arlington on Tuesday, December 2.
