Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Old Dominion
MCGILL: @HerdMBB Doesn't Crack, Rallies to Beat ODU in OT
1/5/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dan D'Antoni Press Conference
By Chuck McGill
HerdZone.com
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The first eight minutes and 10 seconds of Thursday night's men's basketball game at the Henderson Center could have made Marshall crack.
The Thundering Herd missed its first 10 shots against visiting Old Dominion, a stretch that included five turnovers and four personal fouls in 14 empty possessions. The home team faced a two-touchdown deficit - extra points and all.
"They're tough little nuts," Marshall coach Dan D'Antoni said of his team after a 90-86 win against the Monarchs.
ODU entered Thursday's contest allowing a measly 56.4 points per game, the best in Conference USA and second-best in Division I. But even after trailing 14-0, the Herd found a way to eclipse 90 points for the seventh time this season. Old Dominion hadn't allowed a team to score even 70 this season, and had held seven of its first 14 opponents to 55 points or fewer.
It had been 179 games since Old Dominion last allowed an opponent to score 90 or more points (at Richmond, Dec. 20, 2011, a 90-82 loss in OT).
"They're all competitors; they're all little gym rats," D'Antoni said of his Marshall team. "That's the kind of kids we want."
Marshall (10-6, 3-0 Conference USA) didn't hold a lead for more than 37 consecutive minutes - 37:35, to be exact - until senior forward Ryan Taylor completed an old-fashioned 3-point play to give the Herd a 71-70 lead with 2:25 left of the second half.
Fellow senior Stevie Browning added a 3-pointer on the next possession to give MU a 4-point cushion, but the Herd couldn't hang on in regulation. After senior guard Austin Loop missed a rare free throw with six seconds left - he entered the game 19 of 20 on the season and 88.0 percent for his career - ODU's Ahmad Caver laid the ball in at the buzzer to make it 77-77 and force overtime.
"We make a couple little mistakes right when you can't make them," D'Antoni said. "Hopefully we're going to get through that."
Old Dominion (9-6, 2-1 C-USA) held the lead for most of overtime, answering a Loop 3-pointer with one by Jordan Baker with 3:28 left of the extra period for an 83-80 lead. Browning cut the lead to 1 point, 83-82, but Trey Porter finished with a dunk on the other end for another 3-point cushion.
It wasn't until a pair of free throws by Jon Elmore that the Herd tied it at 86-86 with 1:09 left, and then sophomore guard C.J. Burks found Ajdin Penava for the go-ahead layup with 12 seconds left.
Caver, the hero at the end of regulation, missed a layup for the Monarchs on the other end, and then an out-of-bounds call went in the Herd's favor after the teams fought for possession. Elmore made a pair of free throws 2.6 seconds left to seal it.
"It was a game of runs," Elmore said. "They made their runs, we made our runs."
It was also a game of contrasting styles. Marshall entered Thursday's game ranked first in the league in scoring offense and last in scoring defense. ODU entered last in scoring offense and first in scoring defense.
The run-and-gun Herd entered averaging 32.1 more points per game than the more deliberate Monarchs. That ODU defense gave the Herd fits early.
"We knew it was going to be a grind-it-out game," said Taylor, who had five of the 51 fouls of the game. "We knew that was their style."
Marshall outscored ODU 28-18 over the final 12 minutes of the first half, and then held a 49-45 advantage in the second half. For the game, the Monarchs shot 56.3 percent on 3-pointers - 9 of 16 - but finished 24 of 60 inside the arc (40 percent).
Four players finished in double figures in scoring for Marshall: Elmore (26), Taylor (21), Burks (15) and Loop (14). Elmore also had four assists and three steals, and made all but one of his 13 free throws.
Taylor recorded his fifth double-double and moved up the career lists in multiple categories. The 6-foot-5 senior from Indianapolis, Indiana, now has 1,511 career points, passing DeAndre Kane (1,496) for No. 15 in program history. Taylor's 13 rebounds pushed his career total to 820, which moves him past Rodney Holden (812) for sixth on the all-time list.
The win improves the Herd's record to 8-0 at home this season with a visit from Charlotte this Saturday at 7 p.m.
"They've earned the respect of this city and state," D'Antoni said of his Herd, winners of three straight. "I just think they've earned, by their work, the respect of people."
COACH'S CORNER
Head Coach Dan D'Antoni
Opening Statement:
"I was proud of our kids. Even though they scored 86 points, they played a lot of defense. They did a real nice job. We averted a couple of disasters. We made some mistakes right at points when you can't make them, hopefully we will get through that. But, I was proud of them. You go down 14-0 and haven't scored in eight minutes or so. I told them to play hard and keep after it."
On his team's fight:
"Really the last three teams. I mean, we were 0-16 with one team. They didn't quit and won the last seven home games. We were 0-6 last year, didn't quit. And you know what they have earned the respect of the city, the state and the surrounding areas. I just think that they have earned by their work the respect of the people."
On C.J. Burks:
"C.J. is the battering ram that opens the door for everybody else because he can ram it through a locked door. And Ryan (Taylor) is strong and can get up in there. The middle is open, sometimes it's a little ugly but you can't leave (Austin) Loop, you can't leave Stevie (Browning), you can't leave Jon (Elmore) open so you get down there and even though it's a scrum but the other team just can't collapse on [Burks]. They might get one, maybe two down there but that is it.
PLAYER QUOTES
No. 25 senior forward Ryan Taylor
On the comeback:
"It was a struggle in the first half. I don't know. Somebody told us that we didn't score until almost the second media timeout. We knew it was going to be a grind it out game, because of their style, especially when we didn't hit shots. We can play either way, grind it out, up-tempo everything. It was a big win. Where else would you want to be? It was snowing. We had a great crowd. It was a great game to be a part of and watch. Everybody played well. We didn't make shots, but we still stuck with it and played our game. We came out with the win."
On the offense struggling in the beginning of the game:
"We couldn't make shots. They played defense a different way. It was a little extra physical, so maybe it bumped us off a little bit. After that, we adjusted to it and started making shots."
No. 33 junior guard Jon Elmore
On getting to the line:
"They're a physical team and play a different style of defense like Ryan said. We said we weren't hitting shots, so said we had to do something different. We were successful at it, attacking the rim and driving the ball. I think we shot a good amount of free throws.
"With this team, we have so many weapons that it's hard to stop us, whether it's shooting or attacking the basket."
On Old Dominion's tying basket at the end of regulation:
"It's a game of runs. We made our runs. They made their runs. We didn't execute that great in the stretch at the end of regulation, but we knew we had a chance, because the game wasn't over. At the end of the day, we made our run at the end and sealed it off."
