Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Houston*
Marshall Men's Basketball Upsets Houston, 88-83
2/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 18, 2009
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. -
Markel Humphrey matched his career-high with 25 points and Tirrell Baines added 21 to lead Marshall University to an 88-83 win over the University of Houston in Conference USA men's basketball action Wednesday night in Huntington.
Humphrey, a senior forward who continues to play through injury, connected on 9-of-12 shots from the floor and grabbed seven rebounds, while Baines, a sophomore forward, hit 7-of-8 shots and grabbed six boards to help bolster an under-sized Marshall squad that only had eight players dress for the game.
"The game spoke for itself. Our kids played hard. I don't know where to begin; there are so many heroes tonight," Marshall Head Coach Donnie Jones said. "Obviously, Markel Humphrey is the first one. Here is a kid who couldn't practice Sunday, Monday or Tuesday. Today he was limping around at shoot round and when I went to talk to him I got the typical Markel response `Coach...I'll be alright'." Tirrell Baines is the second one. We finally got him to come out and play like he is capable of playing."
The Thundering Herd's pair of freshman guards also turned in solid performances. Shaquille Johnson scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while Damier Pitts scored 11.
"We continue to get better as I've said before. We have played tough games at UTEP and loss a tough here to UAB," Jones said. "This team continues to work hard and we continue to believe."
Marshall (12-14 overall, 4-7 Conference USA) trailed for much of the contest and did not take its first lead of the second half until Humphrey converted a steal into a layup with 1:49 to go in the contest. MU would momentarily relinquish the lead following two Marcus Cousin foul shots before rattling off six unanswered to points to close out the game.
Houston (16-8, 7-4 C-USA) received a career-high 38 points from junior Aubrey Coleman. The Cougar standout hit 16-of-30 shots from the field and was 5-of-7 at the line. He also added six rebounds and four steals in 40 minutes of action. Joining Coleman in double figures for Houston was Marcus Cousin who added 14 points and Qa'rrann Calhoun who chipped in with 10 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
The Cougars entered the game in second place in C-USA and held a decisive height advantage over Marshall. The Thundering Herd's tallest starters were six-foot-six (Humphrey and Baines). Despite this, Marshall managed to grab as many rebounds as the Cougars (30-30) and out-score UH, 52 to 38 in the paint.
The Thundering Herd shot 58.5% from the floor (31-of-53), while the Cougars converted 49.2% of their shots (31-of-63). Both teams shot well at the line with Marshall hitting 23-of-32 free throws (71.9%) and Houston connecting on 19-of-26 (73.1%).
Humphrey eclipsed the 1,300-point plateau for his career in the win. The Marshall senior is now one of only three players in school history to score more than 1,300 points, grab 600 rebounds and record 100 assists in a career. He joins former Marshall greats Russell Lee and J.R. VanHoose on that exclusive list.
Marshall returns to action on Saturday at Tulane. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. (ET) and the game can be heard live across the Thundering Herd/ISP Sports Radio Network.
