Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Tulsa
Marshall Falls To Tulsa 73-69
2/3/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 3, 2010
TULSA, Okla.--The University of Tulsa (18-4, 7-1 C-USA) defeated Marshall University (15-7, 4-4 C-USA), Feb. 3 in the Reynolds Center, 73-69.
Leading 18-13 at the second media timeout of the first half, Marshall raced out of the break on a 11-1 run that was capped off by a Tyler Wilkerson layup. With Marshall leading by 15 (29-14), Bishop Wheatley's free throw broke a over three-minute TU scoring drought.
Three Marshall turnovers in four possessions helped Tulsa regain a foothold in the game. Leading 31-23, Hassan Whiteside drained a 17-footer over fellow seven-footer Jerome Jordan for a 33-23 Marshall advantage. Justin Hurtt responded with a long jumper. Marshall led 33-23 entering the final media timeout of the first half. Tulsa got the lead under 10 again when out of the final media timeout of the half when Jordan, who was fouled by Whiteside, sank 1-of-2 free throws.
The Golden Hurricane chipped away at the MU advantage. Steven Idlet's jumper made it 35-28 with 1:24 to go in the first half. Marshall ended up with the ball for the final possession of the first half. Taking advantage of the situation, Shaquille Johnson made a jumper from just inside the free throw line to allow the Herd to take a 37-28 lead into the halftime break.
Tulsa began the second half by outscoring the Herd 22-10. Wilkerson scored 11 straight Marshall points with his final effort tying the game 52-52 at 10:06. Haymon's putback gave MU a 54-52 lead a little under a minute later. A TU turnover led to Haymon being fouled on a fastbreak. His free throws gave Marshall a four-point advantage. Bryson Pope's three-point play on the next Tulsa possession created a one-point game. Tirrell Baines, making his return to the floor after injury and illness, was fouled on a bucket, but he missed the free throw, leaving the game 58-55 Marshall. The Herd got out on a fast break after a Tulsa miss. Johnson found Chris Lutz open for a wide open three-pointer resulting in a 61-55 lead.
Just before the third media timeout of the closing frame, Jordan was fouled by Whiteside going up for layup, sending the freshman to the bench with his fourth foul. Jordan's eighth and ninth free throw attempts of the night were good, making it 61-57. Marshall turned the ball over resulting in Jordan getting the ball down low. He was fouled and he both attempts from the charity stripe. Jordan picked up his fourth foul when he hit Baines going up for a shot. Baines made the first free throw attempt, but missed the second, giving the Herd a three-point lead (62-59).
Baines fouled Idlet. The 6-10 sophomore made the front end of the 1-and-1 attempt and hit on the second. Leading by one, Lutz missed a three-pointer and the ball went off a Herd player, giving the Golden Hurricane the ball. Jordan put TU back into the lead with a short jumper. The Herd turned it over and fouled Ben Uzoh who made the steal. Uzoh's made the front end of the 1-and-1. Uzoh missed the second, giving Tulsa a 64-62 lead. With the shot clock winding down, Merthie's three-point attempt from 30 feet out was good, returning the lead to the Herd at 65-64.
Marshall worked the ball into Wilkerson into the paint where he was fouled at the 2:17 mark. The 10th TU foul resulted in two free throw attempts for the 6-8 forward. Wilkerson connected on both for a three-point Herd advantage. With 1:41 remaining, Pope was fouled on a putback and he made the free throw to tie the game 67-67. 17 seconds later, a Wilkerson jumper from five-feet out gave the Herd a 69-67 lead.
The Golden Hurricane called timeout with 65 ticks remaining, setting up a play for Uzoh who tied the game with a 19-foot jump shot. Marshall called a 30-second timeout with 41 seconds remaining. The Herd couldn't inbound the ball and were forced to call timeout. Wilkerson missed a 17-foot jumper with Whiteside fouling Jordan on the rebound, sending the Kingston, Jamaica native to the free throw line. Jordan made both attempts for a 71-69 lead. The Herd did not call timeout. Johnson's layup attempt blocked, the rebound found Jordan and his dunk made it the final 73-69.
Wilkerson reset his career high with 26 points. Whiteside was the only other MU player in double figures with 10. He blocked five shots to raise his season total to 118. Jordan led Tulsa as he was 10-of-13 from the free throw line on his way to 24 points. Hurtt ended the night with 18 while Idlet had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
"I am proud of our effort tonight," said Marshall head coach Donnie Jones. "We played hard and I am pleased with our effort tonight. Give Tulsa credit, they made plays when the needed to do to win."
Marshall returns to the court Saturday looking to end their five-game losing streak at home against East Carolina. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. and will be televised on the Thundering Herd/ISP Network.
NOTES--Five of the seven Marshall losses (Old Dominion, West Virginia, UAB, Memphis, and Tulsa) have been by a total of 25 points...Scouts from nine different NBA teams were in attendance... Darryl Merthie's three-pointer at 16:29 of the first half was the 6-0 guard's first points since UAB game Jan. 23...Merthie played a season high 37 minutes, leading Marshall in the category for the game...Whiteside fouled out for the first time this season.
