HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Senior Angelo Warner poured in a game-high 23 points on 7-of-10 from the field, and the Morehead State men’s basketball team held regional rival Marshall to 36 percent shooting en route to a 77-68 non-conference win on Wednesday night at the Henderson Center.
The Eagles, who compete in the Ohio Valley Conference, improve to 3-4 overall and 1-3 on the road. The Thundering Herd, which plays in Conference USA, slips to 3-2 overall and 3-1 at home. MU continues to hold a 50-46 advantage in the all-time series, but MSU has won the last two meetings.
“I’m really proud of our young men for the way they played,” Head Coach Sean Woods said. “This was a great bounce-back performance after our loss to American (on Sunday). We came out with a lot of energy and determination tonight. We also made shots early, which helped quite a bit.”
Morehead State raced out to a 16-4 lead less than six minutes into the contest. The Eagles knocked down 57 percent (17-of-30) before intermission on their way to a 50-point first period. It was MSU’s biggest output in a half since scoring 57 against South Dakota on Dec. 19, 2013.
Marshall pulled to within six points on multiple occasions in the second half and trimmed the deficit to four with 13:44 to play, but the Eagles held off each charge with key baskets and by forcing turnovers. The Thundering Herd led for just 26 seconds, all of the start of the evening.
Morehead State knocked down 49 percent (26-of-53) from the field, including 56 percent (10-of-18) from three-point range. Marshall was limited to 23-of-64 from the floor, including just 7-of-29 (24 percent) from long distance. Both teams canned 15 free throws in the game.
MSU was credited with a season-best 20 assists and committed just 13 turnovers. MU distributed 16 helpers and only gave the ball away nine times. The Eagles registered a 41-39 rebounding edge, but the Thundering Herd posted a 12-8 advantage on the offensive end.
Warner moved into 18th on Morehead State’s career scoring list. He now has 1,233 points in 104 games as an Eagle. He tallied 16 points in the opening period on 6-of-7 from the floor. The performance was his 65th in double figures and 14th of 20-or-more at MSU.
“Angelo is Mr. Consistency,” Woods said. “You know what you’re going to get with him. Angelo played well tonight, especially in the first half, but we had contributions from everyone who got on the floor. We had several players step up the first half, and that allowed Angelo to get going.”
Freshman Marquel Willis posted 11 points in 13 minutes off the Morehead State bench. Senior Karam Mashour added 10 points, nine rebounds and four assists for the Eagles, while senior Kareem Story contributed 10 points, four boards and four assists. Nine MSU players scored.
Marshall’s scoring and rebounding leader, sophomore Ryan Taylor, managed team highs of 13 points and 10 boards. He was also credited with three turnovers and three blocked shots. Senior Shawn Smith and sophomore Austin Loop chipped in with 10 points each for the Thundering Herd.
Morehead State returns to Johnson Arena on Saturday when it hosts NAIA opponent Kentucky Christian at 2 p.m. ET. The Eagle women will follow against Lipscomb at approximately 4:15.
“This win is big for our program, but we have to keep the momentum going,” Woods added. “I’ve known it would take some time for all of our players to get healthy and for us to gel as a unit. I think we’ve done some good things in the season’s first month, but there’s still work to be done.”
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