Marshall University Athletics
Thursday, January 9
Huntington, W.Va
7 p.m.
Marshall University
9-8,2-2Sun Belt
80
vs
78
JMU
9-7,2-2Sun Belt
1
2
F
James Madison
34
44
78
Marshall
32
48
80
Herd Men’s Basketball Takes Nailbiter Over JMU, 80-78
1/9/2025 11:06:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Speer makes program history with 7-for-7 night from three-point range
Box Score (PDF) | Championship Fund
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The Marshall University Men's Basketball team (9-8, 2-2 SBC) survives a contest that came down to the wire in an 80-78 win over the James Madison Dukes (9-7, 2-2 SBC) on Thursday night in the Cam Henderson Center. The Herd rallied back from a half-time deficit for the first time this season.
"Fun game, a fun game to be a part of. Fun game to watch and coach," Herd Men's Basketball Head Coach Corny Jackson said after the contest. "I'm really proud of our guys. They really stepped up to the challenge tonight. A great team win. The crowd was into it. They got the loudest they've been all year, which is really helpful to our guys. I'm not just proud of Cade, but I'm proud of the whole group tonight."
As part of a 27-point night, Jalen Speer made program history by going a perfect 7-for-7 on three-point attempts to become the only player to shot 100 percent on long range shots with at least seven makes. The graduate student is also the only player in the country to go perfect from three with at least seven makes this season.
"Just trust in my work," Speer said about his historic night. "I've had a couple of games where I lost confidence throughout the season with some tries and tribulations, but I just trust in my work. My teammates, like this guy (Cade Gibbs) right beside me, rallying around me, make nights like this hard to beat.
After JMU's Mark Freeman went 1-for-2 from the charity stripe with six seconds left on the clock, Marshall found itself with the ball in a 78-78 ballgame. The Green and White took the ball down the court. Cade Gibbs put up an attempt, but was fouled with just 1.1 to go.
The grad transfer stepped up to the free-throw line and knocked down both attempts as part of a season-high 17 points and 5-of-5 night at the line to give The Herd an 80-78 advantage. The Plainfield, Indiana, native also went 5-for-8 from the field.
"I had a similar situation for a sectional in high school and I actually missed the front end of a one-and-one," Gibbs said about being at the free-throw line with the game on the line. "Then they hit a half-court shot to beat us. It was my last high school game. So since then, I practice free throws all the time because I can't let that happen again. So honestly my thoughts were these weren't the most intense free throws I've had. It's like I do this every day. I've missed bigger ones before. Just lock in, put the work in and let God be the glory."
The Dukes threw a Hail Mary pass on the final inbound, but Dezayne Mingo came up with his second steal to seal the win for Marshall.
The Herd shot a season-best 54.2 percent from three-point range with 13 makes on 27 attempts.
MU led for the vast majority of the first half before trailing 34-32 at halftime as JMU's Xavier Brown hit a buzzer-beating triple. Marshall also trailed by as many four in the second half as it overcame its first half-time deficit of the season.
Mikal Dawson rounded a trio of double-figure scorers joining Gibbs with 17 points on a 7-of-16 shooting night, including 3-for-5 from three. The Huntington, West Virginia, native came up two rebounds shy of a double-double finishing with a game-high eight.
UP NEXT
The Herd closes out a four-game homestand on Saturday at 4 p.m. with a contest against Georgia Southern.
For all the latest information about Marshall Men's Basketball, follow @Herd_MBB on Twitter and @herdmbb on 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.
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The Marshall University Men's Basketball team (9-8, 2-2 SBC) survives a contest that came down to the wire in an 80-78 win over the James Madison Dukes (9-7, 2-2 SBC) on Thursday night in the Cam Henderson Center. The Herd rallied back from a half-time deficit for the first time this season.
"Fun game, a fun game to be a part of. Fun game to watch and coach," Herd Men's Basketball Head Coach Corny Jackson said after the contest. "I'm really proud of our guys. They really stepped up to the challenge tonight. A great team win. The crowd was into it. They got the loudest they've been all year, which is really helpful to our guys. I'm not just proud of Cade, but I'm proud of the whole group tonight."
As part of a 27-point night, Jalen Speer made program history by going a perfect 7-for-7 on three-point attempts to become the only player to shot 100 percent on long range shots with at least seven makes. The graduate student is also the only player in the country to go perfect from three with at least seven makes this season.
"Just trust in my work," Speer said about his historic night. "I've had a couple of games where I lost confidence throughout the season with some tries and tribulations, but I just trust in my work. My teammates, like this guy (Cade Gibbs) right beside me, rallying around me, make nights like this hard to beat.
After JMU's Mark Freeman went 1-for-2 from the charity stripe with six seconds left on the clock, Marshall found itself with the ball in a 78-78 ballgame. The Green and White took the ball down the court. Cade Gibbs put up an attempt, but was fouled with just 1.1 to go.
The grad transfer stepped up to the free-throw line and knocked down both attempts as part of a season-high 17 points and 5-of-5 night at the line to give The Herd an 80-78 advantage. The Plainfield, Indiana, native also went 5-for-8 from the field.
"I had a similar situation for a sectional in high school and I actually missed the front end of a one-and-one," Gibbs said about being at the free-throw line with the game on the line. "Then they hit a half-court shot to beat us. It was my last high school game. So since then, I practice free throws all the time because I can't let that happen again. So honestly my thoughts were these weren't the most intense free throws I've had. It's like I do this every day. I've missed bigger ones before. Just lock in, put the work in and let God be the glory."
The Dukes threw a Hail Mary pass on the final inbound, but Dezayne Mingo came up with his second steal to seal the win for Marshall.
The Herd shot a season-best 54.2 percent from three-point range with 13 makes on 27 attempts.
MU led for the vast majority of the first half before trailing 34-32 at halftime as JMU's Xavier Brown hit a buzzer-beating triple. Marshall also trailed by as many four in the second half as it overcame its first half-time deficit of the season.
Mikal Dawson rounded a trio of double-figure scorers joining Gibbs with 17 points on a 7-of-16 shooting night, including 3-for-5 from three. The Huntington, West Virginia, native came up two rebounds shy of a double-double finishing with a game-high eight.
UP NEXT
The Herd closes out a four-game homestand on Saturday at 4 p.m. with a contest against Georgia Southern.
For all the latest information about Marshall Men's Basketball, follow @Herd_MBB on Twitter and @herdmbb on 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
JMU
Marsh
FG%
.476
.415
3FG%
.333
.542
FT%
.706
.722
RB
43
32
TO
13
8
STL
5
10
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
27
FGM
9
3FGM
7
FTM
2
Pts
17
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
17
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
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