Marshall University Athletics
Kristen Mayo
Photo by: Rick Haye
Red-Hot Herd Hosts North Texas on Thursday
2/6/2019 10:49:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Tip time is 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The Marshall women's basketball team returns to action Thursday evening when it hosts North Texas. Tipoff against the Mean Green is set for 6 p.m. ET in the Cam Henderson Center.
The Thundering Herd enters the game with a record of 13-9 and 7-2 in Conference USA play. The Mean Green is 11-10 and 4-5.
The game will be broadcast on beIN SPORTS Connect and will also be carried on WMUL's (88.1 FM) Cutting Edge Sports Radio Network where it can be accessed through one of the Listen Live links at www.marshall.edu/wmul.
Last Time Out
Marshall overcame a double-digit deficit, yet again, and downed host UTSA 79-72 in overtime in Conference USA Women's Basketball action Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center in San Antonio.
The Thundering Herd improved to 13-9 overall and 7-2 in Conference USA, while UTSA dropped to 6-15 and 1-7 in the league.
The victory, which saw the Roadrunners grab a 12-point second-quarter lead, came on the heels of Marshall's 14-point comeback victory Thursday evening at UTEP.
The win was Marshall's fourth straight league road triumph, the longest such mark for the program since its last year in the Mid-American Conference (2004-05), when it won five straight on the road.
Marshall's Shayna Gore tallied 21 of her game-high 31 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to will the Thundering Herd to victory. Taylor Porter had 19 points and Khadaijia Brooks tied a career-high with 13 rebounds.
UTSA's Tija Hawkins (26 points, 10 rebounds) and Marie Benson (16 points, 16 rebounds) both registered double-doubles and Barbara Benson (8 points, 10 rebounds) narrowly missed one. Marie Benson also had a team-high five assists and three steals.
Marshall faced a seven-point deficit as the game entered the fourth quarter until the Thundering Herd tied it for the first time (at 64) on a Gore triple with 20 seconds left in regulation. Marie Benson then made two free throws five seconds later before Brooks tied it again on a jumper from the top of the key with six seconds left. UTSA's Karrington Donald had a chance to win it on the ensuing possession but her layup fell off to the right as time expired.
Marshall grabbed hold of the game in overtime. With the score tied at 72, Marshall ran off the game's last seven points on a Gore three-point play and four free throws over the contest's final 83 seconds as the Roadrunners misfired on three shots and turned it over on a fourth possession.
"We just couldn't keep them off the glass," said head coach Tony Kemper. "We couldn't get a stop down the stretch. We'd make a basket and they'd go right down and do the same thing."
"I've said before … we don't have a margin for error but that group in the locker room is extremely gritty. I'm so proud of them. It's not easy to do the stuff that they're doing. We have talented players but they're not winning on talent. When they need to, they just get together and find a way. That's really fun to sit over there and watch."
Good Start, Road Record
With a win Thursday vs. North Texas, Marshall would improve to 8-2 in Conference USA, the best league start for the program since the Thundering Herd began 9-0 during the 1988-89 season as members of the Southern Conference. Marshall is currently riding a four-game road win streak in league play. The last time the program had a longer road winning streak in conference action was 2004-05 when MU won five straight during its last season in the Mid-American Conference en route to a 12-4 mark.
Thursday Triumphs
After Marshall's 63-60 win at UTEP, the Thundering Herd is 5-0 on Thursdays in 2018-19.
Money
Marshall's Taylor Porter has made 20 consecutive free throws dating back to the first quarter against Delaware State on December 29. For the season, she has missed just three (42-for-45) and her perfect 18-for-18 mark in league play stands atop the conference's rankings.
Mayo Finding the Range
Marshall guard Kristen Mayo made all six of her 3-point attempts against Coppin State on December 1st and then encountered a 7-for-42 (16.7 percent) swoon over her next nine games. However, in her last six outings, she has hit on 45 percent (9-for-20) from the arc.
Moving up the C-USA Career Ranks
Marshall's Shayna Gore is in lofty company when you compare her numbers to Conference USA's all-time records. She is currently fifth in league history in 3-pointers with 271 and 10th in scoring with 1,858 career points. The up-to-date leaders are below.
Gore in C-USA This Season
Gore can be found near the top of every statistical category in Conference USA this season. She is currently second in 3-pointers game (2.9), third in scoring (19.0), fourth in minutes per game (33.8), fifth in free throw percentage (82.0%) and steals (1.9), ninth in assists (3.2) and 3-point percentage (36.5%) and 10th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.5).
Long-Range
Marshall leads Conference USA with 8.0 3-pointers per game in league-only tilts.
Career-Highs
Marshall's Taylor Porter tied a career-high with seven made field goals in the 79-72 overtime victory at UTSA.
33.4
Shayna Gore is currently averaging a team-high 33.8 minutes per game. The last time a Thundering Herd player logged more was 34.2 by both Leah Scott and Norrisha Victrum during the 2014-15 season.
Herd Rules the Paint (in wins)
Marshall is 11-1 this season when it has more points in the paint (or as many) and 2-8 when the opposition has more.
Five to Play
Marshall is 11-1 this season when it leads (or is tied) with five minutes left on the clock and 2-8 when it does not.
Freebies
The Thundering Herd is 9-2 when it makes more free throws and 4-7 when the opposition has the higher (or tied) total.
Taking Care of It
Marshall is 10-2 when committing fewer turnovers than the opposition (or as many) and 3-7 when it has more.
500 Field Goals
Senior Shayna Gore finished the 2017-18 season just one bucket short of 500 made for her career. With 2:14 left in the first quarter of the season-opener against Indiana State, Gore hit a three to become the eighth player in program history with 500 made field goals. After hitting two more baskets in the game, Gore moved into seventh all-time passing Sheila Johnson (1987-91). Gore is now third with 640 after the UTSA contest. The senior from Logan, W.Va., is 24 from reaching second all-time as Marshall Athletics Hall of Famer Kristina Behnfeldt (1995-99) has 664. Fellow Hall of Famer Karen Pelphrey (1982-86) is the program's all-time leader with 1,175.
Moving on up the Herd Ranks
Shayna Gore put up a career-best performance with 34 points against Bowling Green and moved into fourth place all-time in Marshall scoring history. Gore surpassed former Herd great Tynikki Crook (2007-11) in the third quarter and finished the game at 1,485 career points. Gore buried six 3-pointers, the third time in her career with six or more, in helping to move ahead of Crook.
Gore continued her move up the scoring column with 24 points in the win over Tennessee State (12/15) to move into third place all-time, passing Sikeetha Shepard-Hall (2002-06). She now has 1,858 points for her career. Next up in second place is another Herd Hall of Famer in Kristina Behnfeldt (1995-99) with 2,117, and whose number hangs in the rafters in the Cam Henderson Center.
Conquering Miscues
Marshall committed just five turnovers in the 63-60 win at UTEP, the fewest total for the program since posting that number in a 76-53 win over Florida Atlantic on January 1, 2017.
More Big Numbers
Marshall's 90-88 triple overtime win over Louisiana Tech produced totals that hadn't been seen in some time in conference play.
34 field goals: Most in the 2000s
90 points: Most since 96 vs. Southern Miss on January 7, 2007.
27 forced turnovers: Most since 28 by North Texas on January 14, 2016
14 steals: Most since that same figure by North Texas on January 14, 2016
A Long Time
The Thundering Herd's 86-58 win at FIU produced numbers that hadn't been accomplished by the program in league play in quite some time.
13 3-pointers (most in the 2000s)
54 points in a half (last time MU had that many was vs. UAB on 2/10/06)
16 road assists (last time MU had more was 18 at Rice on 1/5/10)
46.4 3-point percentage (last time MU went higher was 47.8 at Southern Miss on 3/5/16)
86 road points (last time MU had more was 88 at UTSA on 1/26/17)
54.4 field goal percentage (last time MU went higher was 56.8 at Southern Miss on 2/2/17)
Big Number
Marshall's 28-point victory over FIU was the program's largest margin of victory in a league game since the Thundering Herd downed Old Dominion 69-37 in Norfolk on January 8, 2015. (MU's 76-44 win over FIU in the 2016 Conference USA Tournament is technically a "non-conference" game.)
Up Next
Marshall returns to the Cam Henderson Center to face Rice on Saturday at 12 p.m.
For all of the latest information on the Marshall women's basketball team, follow the Herd on Twitter @HerdWBB, Facebook at Marshall University Basketball and on www.herdzone.com.
To follow all Thundering Herd sports and get live stats, schedules, and free live audio, download the Marshall Athletics App for iOS or Android!
The Thundering Herd enters the game with a record of 13-9 and 7-2 in Conference USA play. The Mean Green is 11-10 and 4-5.
The game will be broadcast on beIN SPORTS Connect and will also be carried on WMUL's (88.1 FM) Cutting Edge Sports Radio Network where it can be accessed through one of the Listen Live links at www.marshall.edu/wmul.
Last Time Out
Marshall overcame a double-digit deficit, yet again, and downed host UTSA 79-72 in overtime in Conference USA Women's Basketball action Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center in San Antonio.
The Thundering Herd improved to 13-9 overall and 7-2 in Conference USA, while UTSA dropped to 6-15 and 1-7 in the league.
The victory, which saw the Roadrunners grab a 12-point second-quarter lead, came on the heels of Marshall's 14-point comeback victory Thursday evening at UTEP.
The win was Marshall's fourth straight league road triumph, the longest such mark for the program since its last year in the Mid-American Conference (2004-05), when it won five straight on the road.
Marshall's Shayna Gore tallied 21 of her game-high 31 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to will the Thundering Herd to victory. Taylor Porter had 19 points and Khadaijia Brooks tied a career-high with 13 rebounds.
UTSA's Tija Hawkins (26 points, 10 rebounds) and Marie Benson (16 points, 16 rebounds) both registered double-doubles and Barbara Benson (8 points, 10 rebounds) narrowly missed one. Marie Benson also had a team-high five assists and three steals.
Marshall faced a seven-point deficit as the game entered the fourth quarter until the Thundering Herd tied it for the first time (at 64) on a Gore triple with 20 seconds left in regulation. Marie Benson then made two free throws five seconds later before Brooks tied it again on a jumper from the top of the key with six seconds left. UTSA's Karrington Donald had a chance to win it on the ensuing possession but her layup fell off to the right as time expired.
Marshall grabbed hold of the game in overtime. With the score tied at 72, Marshall ran off the game's last seven points on a Gore three-point play and four free throws over the contest's final 83 seconds as the Roadrunners misfired on three shots and turned it over on a fourth possession.
"We just couldn't keep them off the glass," said head coach Tony Kemper. "We couldn't get a stop down the stretch. We'd make a basket and they'd go right down and do the same thing."
"I've said before … we don't have a margin for error but that group in the locker room is extremely gritty. I'm so proud of them. It's not easy to do the stuff that they're doing. We have talented players but they're not winning on talent. When they need to, they just get together and find a way. That's really fun to sit over there and watch."
Good Start, Road Record
With a win Thursday vs. North Texas, Marshall would improve to 8-2 in Conference USA, the best league start for the program since the Thundering Herd began 9-0 during the 1988-89 season as members of the Southern Conference. Marshall is currently riding a four-game road win streak in league play. The last time the program had a longer road winning streak in conference action was 2004-05 when MU won five straight during its last season in the Mid-American Conference en route to a 12-4 mark.
Thursday Triumphs
After Marshall's 63-60 win at UTEP, the Thundering Herd is 5-0 on Thursdays in 2018-19.
Money
Marshall's Taylor Porter has made 20 consecutive free throws dating back to the first quarter against Delaware State on December 29. For the season, she has missed just three (42-for-45) and her perfect 18-for-18 mark in league play stands atop the conference's rankings.
Mayo Finding the Range
Marshall guard Kristen Mayo made all six of her 3-point attempts against Coppin State on December 1st and then encountered a 7-for-42 (16.7 percent) swoon over her next nine games. However, in her last six outings, she has hit on 45 percent (9-for-20) from the arc.
Moving up the C-USA Career Ranks
Marshall's Shayna Gore is in lofty company when you compare her numbers to Conference USA's all-time records. She is currently fifth in league history in 3-pointers with 271 and 10th in scoring with 1,858 career points. The up-to-date leaders are below.
Gore in C-USA This Season
Gore can be found near the top of every statistical category in Conference USA this season. She is currently second in 3-pointers game (2.9), third in scoring (19.0), fourth in minutes per game (33.8), fifth in free throw percentage (82.0%) and steals (1.9), ninth in assists (3.2) and 3-point percentage (36.5%) and 10th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.5).
Long-Range
Marshall leads Conference USA with 8.0 3-pointers per game in league-only tilts.
Career-Highs
Marshall's Taylor Porter tied a career-high with seven made field goals in the 79-72 overtime victory at UTSA.
33.4
Shayna Gore is currently averaging a team-high 33.8 minutes per game. The last time a Thundering Herd player logged more was 34.2 by both Leah Scott and Norrisha Victrum during the 2014-15 season.
Herd Rules the Paint (in wins)
Marshall is 11-1 this season when it has more points in the paint (or as many) and 2-8 when the opposition has more.
Five to Play
Marshall is 11-1 this season when it leads (or is tied) with five minutes left on the clock and 2-8 when it does not.
Freebies
The Thundering Herd is 9-2 when it makes more free throws and 4-7 when the opposition has the higher (or tied) total.
Taking Care of It
Marshall is 10-2 when committing fewer turnovers than the opposition (or as many) and 3-7 when it has more.
500 Field Goals
Senior Shayna Gore finished the 2017-18 season just one bucket short of 500 made for her career. With 2:14 left in the first quarter of the season-opener against Indiana State, Gore hit a three to become the eighth player in program history with 500 made field goals. After hitting two more baskets in the game, Gore moved into seventh all-time passing Sheila Johnson (1987-91). Gore is now third with 640 after the UTSA contest. The senior from Logan, W.Va., is 24 from reaching second all-time as Marshall Athletics Hall of Famer Kristina Behnfeldt (1995-99) has 664. Fellow Hall of Famer Karen Pelphrey (1982-86) is the program's all-time leader with 1,175.
Moving on up the Herd Ranks
Shayna Gore put up a career-best performance with 34 points against Bowling Green and moved into fourth place all-time in Marshall scoring history. Gore surpassed former Herd great Tynikki Crook (2007-11) in the third quarter and finished the game at 1,485 career points. Gore buried six 3-pointers, the third time in her career with six or more, in helping to move ahead of Crook.
Gore continued her move up the scoring column with 24 points in the win over Tennessee State (12/15) to move into third place all-time, passing Sikeetha Shepard-Hall (2002-06). She now has 1,858 points for her career. Next up in second place is another Herd Hall of Famer in Kristina Behnfeldt (1995-99) with 2,117, and whose number hangs in the rafters in the Cam Henderson Center.
Conquering Miscues
Marshall committed just five turnovers in the 63-60 win at UTEP, the fewest total for the program since posting that number in a 76-53 win over Florida Atlantic on January 1, 2017.
More Big Numbers
Marshall's 90-88 triple overtime win over Louisiana Tech produced totals that hadn't been seen in some time in conference play.
34 field goals: Most in the 2000s
90 points: Most since 96 vs. Southern Miss on January 7, 2007.
27 forced turnovers: Most since 28 by North Texas on January 14, 2016
14 steals: Most since that same figure by North Texas on January 14, 2016
A Long Time
The Thundering Herd's 86-58 win at FIU produced numbers that hadn't been accomplished by the program in league play in quite some time.
13 3-pointers (most in the 2000s)
54 points in a half (last time MU had that many was vs. UAB on 2/10/06)
16 road assists (last time MU had more was 18 at Rice on 1/5/10)
46.4 3-point percentage (last time MU went higher was 47.8 at Southern Miss on 3/5/16)
86 road points (last time MU had more was 88 at UTSA on 1/26/17)
54.4 field goal percentage (last time MU went higher was 56.8 at Southern Miss on 2/2/17)
Big Number
Marshall's 28-point victory over FIU was the program's largest margin of victory in a league game since the Thundering Herd downed Old Dominion 69-37 in Norfolk on January 8, 2015. (MU's 76-44 win over FIU in the 2016 Conference USA Tournament is technically a "non-conference" game.)
Up Next
Marshall returns to the Cam Henderson Center to face Rice on Saturday at 12 p.m.
For all of the latest information on the Marshall women's basketball team, follow the Herd on Twitter @HerdWBB, Facebook at Marshall University Basketball and on www.herdzone.com.
To follow all Thundering Herd sports and get live stats, schedules, and free live audio, download the Marshall Athletics App for iOS or Android!
Players Mentioned
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