Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Old Dominion
Second-Half Surge Does In Herd
3/5/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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| Daniel Postgame Press Conference
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. -- Old Dominion's Jennie Simms fell one rebound shy of a double-double as the Lady Monarchs erased a three-point halftime deficit to win 67-55 over Marshall women's basketball Thursday evening at the Cam Henderson Center in snowy Huntington.
ODU improved to 18-10 overall and 11-6 in Conference USA with the win, while Marshall dropped to 16-12 and 8-9 in the league.
Simms tallied 19 points, nine rebounds and five assists and Destinee Young and Tiffany Minor added 12 and 11 points, respectively. Young and Chelisa Painter combined for 16 rebounds to lead a team effort that saw the Lady Monarchs control the class by a commanding 50-31 margin.
The Thundering Herd was led by AJ Johnson's 17 points on five 3-pointers. She now has 69 on the season, tying her with Shay Weaver (2011-13) for the school's all-time single-season mark. Leah Scott added 11 points and Chukwuka Ezeigbo pitched in seven rebounds.
Marshall held ODU in check for virtually the entire first half and even built an eight-point lead (24-16) on an Ashley Lambert layup at the 5:11 mark. The margin would be three (28-25) at halftime.
Marshall held the lead in the second half until Minor drained a 3-pointer at the 13:22 mark to give the Lady Monarchs a lead they wouldn't relinquish. It kick-started a 23-3 run over the game's next 10 minutes that salted away the verdict.
ODU also held a 17-7 advantage in points off turnovers despite the fact that it made one more miscue (17-16) than did Marshall.
Thursday's game marked the first time (13-1) all season that the Herd lost a game it led at the half.
The Thundering Herd will be back in action Saturday when it takes on Charlotte at 1 p.m. Prior to the game, Marshall will honor seniors Johnson, Aja Sorrells and Ezeigbo in a short ceremony.
