Feb 14, 2002
Box Score
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Behind a 66.7 percent three-point shooting performance, including an 81.1 percent first-half effort, Marshall topped Miami, 82-74. Ronald Blackshear came off the bench for the Thundering Herd to drill 8-of-12 three pointers and tally 29 points. Eugene Seals had a solid effort for the RedHawks producing his second double-double of the season with 12 points and a game-best 10 rebounds. He also notched four assists, two blocks and two steals in 38 minutes of play.
The Thundering Herd (12-11, 6-7 Mid-American Conference) snapped Miami's three-game conference winning streak. Miami (11-13, 8-5) outrebounded Marshall 41-26.
Marshall took a five-point edge early in the first half, 12-7, but the RedHawks manufactured 14 unanswered points to post their largest lead of the game, 21-12. Seals recorded two field goals, two free throws a blocked shot and an assist during the Miami run. Marshall, however, went on a 9-2 run to cut the RedHawk advantage to two, 23-21. The Thundering Herd continued to drill three-point shots, draining five treys on a 15-4 run near the end of the first half to take a 38-31 lead at the 2:11 mark. A three-point bucket by Ben Helmers with 1:49 remaining and a two-point field goal by Chet Mason with three seconds left cut the Herd lead to two, 38-36.
A quick pair of RedHawk baskets at the start of the second half, knotted the game, 40-40. But again Marshall responded with a scoring run to take a six-point edge, 48-42. Alex Shorts drained a pair of free throws and a layup, and Seals followed with a fastbreak layup to tie the score again, 48-48. Marshall went on a 13-3 run to take a 10-point lead, 61-51, and was able to extend its lead to as many as 12 by the 5:19 mark, 69-57. But a pair of treys by Larry Drake and Doug Davis sparked a RedHawk rally, as Miami went on a 14-4 run to cut the Marshall lead to two, 73-71, with 1:28 remaining. That, however, would be as close as Miami could get.
J. R. VanHoose scored 14 points for Marshall, Tamar Slay added 13, Monty Wright had 12 and Latece Williams scored 11. Wright also had nine assists.
Davis led Miami with 15 points. Shorts also scored 12 points, while Drake added 10.
