— By David Walsh
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Marshall University got career-highs in points from Jarrod West and backup Mikel Beyers, leading the Thundering Herd past Louisiana Tech, 83-79, in overtime in Conference USA action at Cam Henderson Center.
West finished with 25 points, making 9-of-15 shots overall, 4-of-7 from the three-point line and dished out seven assists. With Herd big man Iran Bennett hampered again by foul trouble and Goran Miladinovic out with an injured ankle, Beyers answered the call. Beyers knocked down 8-of-11 shots overall and 6-of-9 from behind the arc. He also had six rebounds and all came in 28 minutes.
Amorie Archibald made of one of two free throws with 19 seconds left in regulation to give the Bulldogs a 68-66 lead. Marshall then played for a final shot. West missed a jumper with 10 seconds left, but Beyers got the rebound and scored with five seconds to go to tie the game and force overtime.
In the extra period, West scored on a layup with 2:35 to play to put the Herd ahead for good, 75-73. From that point on, Marshall this time did what was needed to finish with the win.
“Mikel started to shoot like the player we recruited,” Herd coach Dan D’Antoni said. “I’m glad he chose tonight. Mikel did not hesitate. One time, but I’ll take what he’s done Jarrod’s just tough as nails. The only 3-year guy on the floor. We’ve got a bunch of boys playing, got one man. He’s a man, a trooper. I love him.”
Marshall finished the night with a season-high 13 three-pointers. Bennett, 6-foot-9, had no points and two rebounds before he fouled out.
Taevion Kinsey, the Herd’s top scored, totaled 19 points and team-high eight rebounds. At the foul line, Marshall hit just 8-of-18 attempts. The Herd is No. 14 in C-USA in foul shooting.
“Mikel came in and hit some big shots,” West said. “His best game since he’s been at MU. He stepped up to the plate today. We haven’t been able to finish games. Tonight shows we can finish and win against those good teams. We’ve got to carry the momentum foward.”
Marshall is 12-13 overall and 6-6 in C-USA. The Herd returns to action next Thursday at UTSA (9 p.m., CBS SportsNetwork). The Texas road trip ends next Saturday afternoon at UTEP. After next Saturday’s games, C-USA teams will enter pod play for their final four games. Teams are divided into three pods.
Louisiana Tech drops into a second-place tie with Western Kentucky at 8-3. The Bulldogs, with their first two-game losing streak, is 17-7 overall.
“What Beyers did doesn’t surprise me,” Kinsey said. “Coach Dan pushes us every day. I’ve seen Mikel shoot lights out in practice. When his name gets called, he stepped up to the plate. The job’s not done yet.”
Before Saturday, Beyers best point output was 13 in a win over Bluefield State back on Dec. 11.
Kalob Ledeoux led the Bulldogs with 16 points. Mubarak Muhammed, JaColby Pemberton and Andrew Gordon netted 12 each. Gordon hit all six shots he took and Muhammed made all five and pulled down 12 rebounds for a double-double. Mubarak is 6-7 and Gordon 6-10, helping the visitors to a 43-32 edge on the boards.
North Texas leads the league at 10-2. FIU and Charlotte are each 8-4. The Herd is tied with Old Dominion and FAU at 6-6.
Marshall is now 62-49 overall all-time in overtime games. The Herd ended a three-game skid in extra sessions.
Attendance was a season-high 6,531.