HUNTINGTON — Marshall’s men’s basketball team secured the first of two all-important games in the final week of the regular season, surpassing Old Dominion 83-66 on Tuesday.
The win at the Cam Henderson Center placed the Thundering Herd at 11-6 in Sun Belt Conference play, half a game behind a three-way tie for second.
James Madison held on for a win to remain two and a half games ahead of the pack. Two games will be played on Wednesday by teams in that tie for second place.
“They came out on fire to start the game, and we kept our poise, for the most part,†Marshall coach Corny Jackson said. “In the start of the game, we had a few blown assignments. We corrected those at halftime, and took the 3 away from [the Monarchs’ Robert Davis]. All in all, good team win.â€
Dezayne Mingo led the Herd with 22 points just three days after setting a new season high with 25. He also assisted six shots and finished with only one turnover.
“He’s a smooth operator, and he’s getting better and better,†Jackson said of Mingo. “He’s a young man that came from Canada and had to adjust to physicality and athleticism, but he’s made that adjustment.â€
Obinna Anochili-Killen (11 points), Nate Martin (12) and Mikal Dawson (11) joined Mingo in double digits.
“The best thing about our team is that we’re really deep,†Mingo said. “You don’t know whose night it’s going to be.â€
“He’s also the Canadian. Shai Gilgeous or whatever his name is,†Anochili-Killen said of Mingo and NBA point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, also from north of the border. “He’ll come off the screen and you look at his face and — he’s a huge piece for us. I love that he is here for my last year.â€
For the Monarchs, Robert Davis led the way with 23 points, but his 4-of-6 start from 3-point range went cold as he ended the night shooting 4 of 10 from 3 and 6 of 15 from the field.
The Herd started hot, making 4 of its first 6 shots. The Herd took advantage of two early Old Dominion turnovers to lead 11-7 after a last-second floater from Nate Martin. Martin’s trebuchet-like shot flung from the top of the key a few possessions later. It was nothing but net to make it 14-10, Herd.
Old Dominion, though, started 6 of 10 from the field and led 16-14 entering the first media timeout after a 6-0 run.
Mikal Dawson helped the Herd take back the lead, 22-21, with 8:39 left in the first half with a shot-clock-beating 3-pointer from the Mountain Health Network logo.
The Herd started 4 of 7 from 3, while Old Dominion went 5 of 9 to keep pace.
Dawson hit another as he began to take over with 11 points on a 4-of-4 start. The Herd tied it 30-30 before the Monarchs went right down the floor and scored on a layup.
Old Dominion entered having only lost three times when shooting an effective field goal percentage of 50% or greater. It sat at 71.43% by the 4:53 mark in the first, a margin that would beat its best game by more than 10%.
So when a Mingo jumper put Marshall at 59.1% shooting from the field and 55.6% shooting behind the arc, the game became one of whose bubble would pop quickest.
Erich Harding made sure that it would not be Marshall. After his dunk gave the Herd an early spark, he reentered with a jumper at the 2:59 mark to give Marshall a 6-0 scoring spurt. The Herd led 36-32.
Marshall closed the half with a 5-of-6 stretch of shooting while holding Old Dominion to no made FGs in four minutes. The Herd led 39-38 at halftime.
While the margin was close, the Monarchs had begun to cool off, ending the half at 46.4% from the field to Marshall’s 60%.
“We normally talk about it, but we actually pulled them into the film room to show the guys at halftime that we needed to make an adjustment,†Jackson said. “They executed it.â€
Mingo joined Dawson in double digits with a 3-pointer to begin the second as the rock fight continued. Consecutive turnovers from both teams and a Marshall foul gave Old Dominion a dunk to get back within a point — 47-46 in Marshall’s favor.
Wyatt Fricks then broke the game open with a 3-pointer in the corner after an offensive rebound by Mingo. Marshall led by four before free throws and a jumper from Mingo made it a seven-point lead with 10 minutes left.
Fricks, Harding, Jakob Gibbs and Kai Spears were integral for Marshall as spark plugs throughout the night.
“Kai came in and gave us great minutes,†Jackson said. “You expect what you expect from starters, but those guys came in and gave us huge minutes. Great team win.â€
Anochili-Killen stole the fourth turnover in five minutes from Old Dominion on the next possession as Mingo found Martin.
It became a 12-0 run as Mingo continued to take over. A step-through floater led to a friendly roll and a 15-point lead as the Herd quickly found the largest margin of the night.
“We get everyone’s best shot,†Anochili-Killen said. “Nobody has the atmosphere we have. Look at the crowd. Go to a Sun Belt game — you don’t get the same crowd that we get at all. Most of the guys want to come showcase it in front of the crowd, but at the end of the day — it was like Arkansas State. They start hot, and then they cool down.â€
Old Dominion never came closer than an 11-point deficit from that point on as the Herd cruised to a 17-point win.
Marshall (18-12, 11-6) hosts Appalachian State for senior night at 9 p.m. on Friday in the final regular season game of the season.
“We feel good,†Anochili-Killen said. “We’re going to celebrate and then, like coach says, we’re going to watch film and put that behind us. We’re going to focus on App State.â€
Old Dominion (11-19, 7-10) travels to Coastal Carolina on the same date, playing at 7:30 p.m.
Tyler Kennett is a sports writer for The Herald-Dispatch. Reach him at tkennett@hdmediallc.com. Follow @tylerkennett on X.
