— By David Walsh
Georgia State staged a late second-half rally to catch, eventually pass and finally score the win over Marshall, 81-73, in Sun Belt Conference action Saturday afternoon at GSU Convocation Center in Atlanta.
The Thundering Herd, which had its four-game win streak halted, led 69-61 with 6:13 to play. The Panthers then closed with a 20-4 run to prevail and split the season series. Marshall won the first matchup by four (84-80).
Micah Tucker made two free throws with 4:20 to play to pull the Panthers even at 69-69. Christian Beam then hit the second of two free throws with 3:07 left to give the home team the lead for good, 70-69, much to the delight of the 1,892 fans.
“We deserved to lose,” Marshall coach Corny Jackson said on postgame radio. “Look at it any way, we’ve got to keep guys off the foul line. We go up 12 and then get a technical, then foul. They have eight field goals (second half) and 25 free throws. That’s a recipe for disaster. Kudos to Georgia State.”
Marshall (11-6, 3-2 SBC) had a 10-6 edge in threes. At the foul line, though, Georgia State made 33-of-39 compared to 13-of-22 for the Herd. That’s the most free throws shot by an opponent since 2013 when Morehead State attempted 57 and made 40. Marshall’s Matt Van Komen, Jalen Speer and Landen Joseph each fouled out. Noah Otshudi finished with four fouls.
Jelani Hamilton led Georgia State (6-12, 3-3 SBC) with 23 points, six over his average. He went 12-of-13 at the foul line. Jakai Newton and Tucker each had 13. Newton went 6-of-6 and Tucker 4-of-4 at the foul line. Malachai Brown and Beam added 11 each. Beam hit 7-of-11 free throws.
“I want to give Marshall a boatload of credit for coming in with a ton of physicality,” Panthers coach Jonas Hayes said. “But at the end of the day, we have to protect our home. It was a physical and emotional game, but our guys stepped up in a massive way and I couldn’t be more proud.”
Hamilton scored with 2:23 to go for a 72-69 lead. Otshudi hit at 2:14 to get the margin to one at 72-71. That would be it for the Herd until Wyatt Fricks made the final hoop with nine seconds left.
Beam scored on a follow with 1:35 to play to make it 74-71. After a Herd miss, Newton nailed a three for the Panthers with 56 seconds left for a 77-71 cushion. Marshall then suffered a turnover and miss by Caleb Hollenbeck. Newton got fouled with 27 seconds to go and made both or a 79-71 lead. Fricks got the basket with nine seconds left, then Hamilton followed with two free throws to set the final score.
Marshall now gets ready for a four-game homestand. Coastal Carolina visits Wednesday. Tip at Cam Henderson Center is 7 p.m. James Madison is in Saturday at 4 p.m. Then it’s ULM on Jan. 22 and South Alabama on Jan. 24.
“Offensively they didn’t do anything,” Jackson said. “The only thing they did is we helped if we kept fouling. Eight field goals, 25 free throws. We kept telling guys we can’t do that. Made them do pushups in practice. At some point we have to grow. Got through other games, able to overcome. Showed its face tonight. It’s basketball. There’s going to be fouls. It’s the silly fouls. 6-7 guy in post, a 7-4 guys tries to reach over him for a steal instead of making him shoot over him. Get the technical. Get a guy on the elbow and send him to the line. They made plays when they needed to. We have 10 threes, they have six. They have 33 free throws (made), and us 12. That’s the game.”
In the first half, Marshall led 36-29 with 2:40 to play only to see the Panthers, helped by a 9-0 run, charge back and force a 38-38 draw at halftime.
Fricks led Marshall with 21 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. Joseph got 15 before fouling out. Otshudi closed with 11. Speer had three point (zero threes). The Herd finished with 17 turnovers and the Panthers turned them into 18 points.
Georgia State won the board battle 43-35. The Panthers got 14 on offense and scored 19 second-chance points. Its bench contributed 32 points.