Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
14-19,6-12Sun Belt
#7 Seed Louisiana
13-16,9-9Sun Belt
Marshall Women’s Basketball Outlasts Louisiana, 48-46
3/6/2025 6:19:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Herd defense forces 19 turnovers in comeback, advances to play App State on Friday
Box Score | 2025 SBC Tournament Bracket | Coach Fulks Post-Game Presser
PENSACOLA, Fla. – Marshall Women's Basketball showed its toughness down the stretch, showing its grit on the defensive end to get stops in a 48-46 win over No. 7 Louisiana in the 2025 Hercules Tires SBC Women's Basketball Championship at Pensacola Bay Center on Thursday.
With the win, Marshall has now won six of its last seven games and advances to the fourth round of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament where the Herd will face No. 6 seed App State at 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT on Friday.
"I thought we did such a good job taking care of the ball," Marshall Women's Basketball coach Juli Fulks said. "They had so much pressure and we only had 10 turnovers and we got 61 shots up. In my experience in the postseason, scores get lower and lower. You have to be able to defend, get stops and get rebounds. We had so many huge box-outs and down the stretch when we needed to get stops, we weren't just getting stops, we were getting steals."
Playing in their third game in as many days, Marshall's defense got stronger as the game went on. In the final quarter, Marshall limited Louisiana to just 2-of-10 shooting while forcing six turnovers – the last of which came with 3.7 seconds remaining as the Herd's pressure forced an errant pass into the block that went out of bounds.
Marshall's Meredith Maier hit one of two free throws to set the final score, and the Herd celebrated the win after Louisiana's desperation heave at the horn went awry.
"Our confidence is there, but we are just really playing hard right now," Marshall senior guard Aislynn Hayes said. "We want every loose ball. We just want it. We want it more than every team right now."
The Herd was led in scoring by Hayes, who scored 21 points and hit four 3-pointers in the win. Maier finished with eight points, eight rebounds and three steals – all in the fourth quarter – while C.C. Mays added eight as well.
The game's biggest shot, however, belonged to Timberlynn Yeast, who took a feed from Peyton Ilderton in the corner and buried a 3-pointer that gave Marshall a 45-44 lead with 2:30 left. The Herd would not trail again.
Mays added a driving basket with 1:09 left and the Herd defense stayed strong, keeping Louisiana without a field goal over the final three minutes in the victory.
"We have spent all year working on being better on defense," Fulks said. "Every week, we have looked significantly different, significantly better and each week, we've attacked what was breaking down. There were so many great rotations today when they would drive to the corners, we would get really quick switches and when the ball went to the mid-post, we got the blocks covered."
After struggling offensively in the first half, Marshall came out of the gates strong in the third quarter for the second straight day, finding its range from behind the arc while forcing Louisiana into turnovers.
The result was an 11-0 run that turned a six-point deficit into a 34-29 lead following a steal and layup by Hayes.
Hayes had eight points in the run, connecting on a pair of 3-pointers sandwiched around a Maier 3-pointer to jumpstart the offense.
The third quarter surge came after Marshall went on a 10-3 run late in the first half, led by five points from Ilderton, that gave the team momentum heading into the second half.
Looking ahead, Marshall and App State split the season series against each other with each team winning on the road. The Herd defeated App State, 76-58, on Feb. 19.
To see the bracket for the 2025 Hercules Tires Sun Belt Championship, click HERE.
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