Marshall University Athletics
Thursday, December 30
Ruston, La.
9 PM ET/8 PM CT
Marshall University
-77,01 CUSA
56
at
79
LA Tech
-103,10 CUSA
1
2
F
Marshall
27
29
56
Louisiana Tech
42
37
79
Photo by: Elise Bordlee
Herd Men’s Basketball Falls at LA Tech
12/31/2021 12:07:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Anochili-Killen scored 15 points
Box Score
RUSTON, La. – The Marshall University men's basketball team (7-7, 0-1 C-USA) dropped its Conference USA opener on the road to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (10-3, 1-0 C-USA), 79-56, on Thursday night in Ruston.
"There's only so much I can do," Marshall men's basketball Dan D'Antoni said. "It's not a simple thing. I looked at the stats and our biggest worry was Kenneth Lofton, Jr. We held him to seven points."
Freshman Obinna Anochili-Killen put up a team-high 15 points and finished tied with senior Darius George at eight boards.
Junior Taevion Kinsey added 13 points with redshirt sophomore Andrew Taylor following with 12. Kinsey also grabbed seven rebounds.
The Marshall defense held Kenneth Lofton, Jr., to just seven points and six boards as he was averaging 18.1 points and 10.1 rebounds per contest this season. However, Cobe Williams poured 22 points through the basket and Keaston Willis finished with 20.
After the Bulldogs made the opening the basket, Taylor ignited a 10-0 Herd run with a jumper. Anochili-Killen paced the visitors with six points during the advantage and Kinsey capped it off with a pair of free throws. MU led 10-2 at the 17:12 mark.
However, LA Tech answered with a 17-0 run from 14:16 to 9:45 and led 26-16. Marshall was outscored 33-11 from the start of the Bulldogs' run until the end of half. The Herd trailed 42-27 at the break.
The Bulldogs led by 20 or more points for the majority of the second half with the help of an 11-0 run. MU was outpaced by LA Tech 37-29 in the final 20 minutes of play.
NOTES
Kinsey reached double-figure scoring for the 48th consecutive outing. The guard also reached the 1,600-point plateau in the game.
The Herd made a three in its 984th consecutive game, with the last contest without a triple occurring on Feb. 27, 1989, in a win over App State.
Anochili-Killen has reached double-figure scoring in 12 games this season. Taylor has done so 10 times.
Senior Darius George played in his 126th career game. He is now tied for fifth most in program history with Jarrod West (2017-21), Jannson Williams (2016-21) and Daryl Merthie (2006-10).
MARSHALL HEAD COACH DAN D'ANTONI QUOTES
Opening statement: "We put it out there. Now it's up to them. You can't keep picking at a scab. You're going to start bleeding. There's only so much I can do. It's not a simple thing. But I'm looking at all the stats and our biggest worry was Kenneth Lofton, Jr. He had seven points. We kind of shut him down. He was 3-for-5 (from the field) and 0-for-2 (from three-point range). He really wasn't the problem. The problem was with their guards and other things. But at the same time I thought our game plan was good and we executed it. They went 6-of-10 on free throws. 10-of-13 for us. Rebounds were 44-44. We out rebounded them 14-7 on the offensive glass."
On the plan before FAU with game at Southern Miss postponed: "We have nine days. We'll take the weekend off. That gives us Monday and Tuesday to practice. Then we have Wednesday off. Then we are back on the court Thursday and Friday, and play FAU on Saturday. This is more of a mental thing, not a physical thing. I thought we had a great practice day before this game. The ball just isn't going in the hole. Somehow our two guards, Andy (Taylor) and Taevion (Kinsey), have to get it going. I believe in them and I trust them. We have to somehow fight through to get them to the games they are capable of having."
UP NEXT
MU is back in action on Jan. 8 when it hosts FAU in the Cam Henderson Center. Opening tip is scheduled for 7 p.m.
For all the latest information about Marshall men's basketball, follow @HerdMBB on Twitter and Instagram.
To follow all Thundering Herd sports and get live stats, schedules and free live audio, download the Marshall Athletics App for iOS and Android.
---HerdZone.com---
RUSTON, La. – The Marshall University men's basketball team (7-7, 0-1 C-USA) dropped its Conference USA opener on the road to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (10-3, 1-0 C-USA), 79-56, on Thursday night in Ruston.
"There's only so much I can do," Marshall men's basketball Dan D'Antoni said. "It's not a simple thing. I looked at the stats and our biggest worry was Kenneth Lofton, Jr. We held him to seven points."
Freshman Obinna Anochili-Killen put up a team-high 15 points and finished tied with senior Darius George at eight boards.
Junior Taevion Kinsey added 13 points with redshirt sophomore Andrew Taylor following with 12. Kinsey also grabbed seven rebounds.
The Marshall defense held Kenneth Lofton, Jr., to just seven points and six boards as he was averaging 18.1 points and 10.1 rebounds per contest this season. However, Cobe Williams poured 22 points through the basket and Keaston Willis finished with 20.
After the Bulldogs made the opening the basket, Taylor ignited a 10-0 Herd run with a jumper. Anochili-Killen paced the visitors with six points during the advantage and Kinsey capped it off with a pair of free throws. MU led 10-2 at the 17:12 mark.
However, LA Tech answered with a 17-0 run from 14:16 to 9:45 and led 26-16. Marshall was outscored 33-11 from the start of the Bulldogs' run until the end of half. The Herd trailed 42-27 at the break.
The Bulldogs led by 20 or more points for the majority of the second half with the help of an 11-0 run. MU was outpaced by LA Tech 37-29 in the final 20 minutes of play.
NOTES
Kinsey reached double-figure scoring for the 48th consecutive outing. The guard also reached the 1,600-point plateau in the game.
The Herd made a three in its 984th consecutive game, with the last contest without a triple occurring on Feb. 27, 1989, in a win over App State.
Anochili-Killen has reached double-figure scoring in 12 games this season. Taylor has done so 10 times.
Senior Darius George played in his 126th career game. He is now tied for fifth most in program history with Jarrod West (2017-21), Jannson Williams (2016-21) and Daryl Merthie (2006-10).
MARSHALL HEAD COACH DAN D'ANTONI QUOTES
Opening statement: "We put it out there. Now it's up to them. You can't keep picking at a scab. You're going to start bleeding. There's only so much I can do. It's not a simple thing. But I'm looking at all the stats and our biggest worry was Kenneth Lofton, Jr. He had seven points. We kind of shut him down. He was 3-for-5 (from the field) and 0-for-2 (from three-point range). He really wasn't the problem. The problem was with their guards and other things. But at the same time I thought our game plan was good and we executed it. They went 6-of-10 on free throws. 10-of-13 for us. Rebounds were 44-44. We out rebounded them 14-7 on the offensive glass."
On the plan before FAU with game at Southern Miss postponed: "We have nine days. We'll take the weekend off. That gives us Monday and Tuesday to practice. Then we have Wednesday off. Then we are back on the court Thursday and Friday, and play FAU on Saturday. This is more of a mental thing, not a physical thing. I thought we had a great practice day before this game. The ball just isn't going in the hole. Somehow our two guards, Andy (Taylor) and Taevion (Kinsey), have to get it going. I believe in them and I trust them. We have to somehow fight through to get them to the games they are capable of having."
UP NEXT
MU is back in action on Jan. 8 when it hosts FAU in the Cam Henderson Center. Opening tip is scheduled for 7 p.m.
For all the latest information about Marshall men's basketball, follow @HerdMBB on Twitter and Instagram.
To follow all Thundering Herd sports and get live stats, schedules and free live audio, download the Marshall Athletics App for iOS and Android.
---HerdZone.com---
Team Stats
Marsh
LATech
FG%
.294
.485
3FG%
.207
.281
FT%
.769
.600
RB
44
44
TO
12
8
STL
6
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
15
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
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