By David Walsh
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Toledo continued its good fortune against Marshall in men’s basketball Wednesday night thanks to Marreon Jackson’s dominance in overtime.
Jackson, senior guard from Cleveland, scored 14 of the 16 points in overtime for the Rockets who prevailed, 96-87, to make it four straight wins over the Thundering Herd in this series. The teams entered the extra five minutes tied 80-80 after Jackson denied a potential game-winning shot by Marshall’s Jarrod West with four seconds left.
Jackson, the team’s No. 2 scorer, led the Rockets (5-3) with 23 points.
“He made some big-time plays. Got to give him credit for that,” Herd coach Dan D’Antoni said of Jackson, a senior. “He’s been a big star for them for four years. He’s a quality play and made quality plays in the overtime.”
Ryan Rollins added 16 points and 13 rebounds for a double-double for Toledo. Setric Miller finished with 15.
Taevion Kinsey, the Thundering Herd’s leading scorer, led with 20 points. Mikel Beyers came off the bench for 14 and West and Jannson Williams each had 13.
“They’re a good team. Give them credit. They played better than us,” West said. “We didn’t move the ball the way we’re supposed to. Turned the ball over too much. Gave them extra possessions.”
Marshall scored the final 10 points in regulation to overcome an 80-70 lead and nearly win.
West and Andrew Taylor each hit 3-pointers in the rally and Kinsey got a dunk with a minute left to tie the game.
With 33 seconds left, Toledo took a timeout. Jackson missed a trey for the Rockets and then denited West on the shot before the buzzer to force the Herd’s first overtime game of the season.
Jackson hit a three at 4:13 to put Toledo ahead to stay, 83-80. 3:25. He made another trey for an 86-80 lead and Rollins followed with a dunk for an 88-80 advantage with 1:39 left. Jackson added two more baskets and four free throws down the stretch to hold off Marshall.
Toledo had a 48-37 edge on the boards. The Herd had 18 turnovers to 15 for the Rockets. The Herd blocked 10 shots to one for the visitors. Toledo led in bench points 34-23 and points in the paint 46-32. Marshall totaled a season-high 11 threes and Toledo, the top three-scoring unit in the MAC, had 10.
“A lot of one-on-one. We have be more positive as a unit,” Kinsey said. “We can’t win it by ourselves. We got caught up lot in one-on-one. They played better. They made the shots to win the game.”
In the first half, Toledo raced to an early 16-4 lead, making the Herd play comeback again.
Marshall was seeking its first eight-game win streak (dating back to last season) since it started the 1999-2000 season 10-0. This is the first game Marshall has been outrebounded.
“We came out flat,”D’Antoni said. “Win four in a row will teach you a lesson in humility. Toledo didn’t (come out flat). They’re silent killers. We’ve got to understand they level they played.”
Toledo leads the all-time series now 36-23.