— By David Walsh
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Marshall coach Corny Jackson sounded more upbeat in the postgame media interview Monday night than last Wednesday and for good reason.
Jackson got to size up all the improvements he saw in the Thundering Herd’s romp over Buffalo, 92-65, in the Mid-American Conference-Sun Belt Conference Challenge contest at Cam Henderson Center.
Contrast that to the mood swing five days earlier after Marshall had to work hard to knock off NAIA-member Pikeville, 78-68, in its second exhibition.
“The focus was better,” Jackson said. “You could tell that the last couple of days. They got after it. Proud of the way they played tonight. They had the intangibles.”
Buffalo’s Drew Steffe hit a jumper with 13:41 left in the half to cut the Bulls’ deficit to 12-10. The Herd’s Noah Otshudi followed with a jumper in the paint and the eventual blowout loomed.
As the game progressed, Marshall would go on several runs while the Bulls endured scoring droughts. The biggest lead for the Herd was 34 points at 69-35 after Bryce Slay’s dunk with 13:04 left.
“Feels great. Exhibitions are different,” Slay said. “The last exhibition was kind of rough. Coach told us we had to keep them off the boards to win.”
That message clearly got across as the Herd had a 41-31 edge on the boards and limited the Bulls to six offensive rebounds.
“It was super tough in practice,” Marshall guard Emmanuel Manyuon said. “That’s what makes this amazing. Coach holds us accountable.”
One of many new faces on the Marshall roster, Manyoun offered a strong first impression and totaled 22 points and 11 rebounds. He made 9-of-12 shots.
Slay shot 8 for 12 and scored 19 points, while Noah Otshudi and Fazl Oshodi hit for 16 each.
Buffalo shot 23 of 62 (37 percent) and made 5 of 27 3-pointers.
“I was pleased with the intensity. To hold them to six offensive rebounds is big,” Jackson said. “Four guys in double figures. Those intangible stats show they’re playing hard. Pretty pleased with the effort we showed tonight.”
Buffalo posted a 17-15 mark last season. The Bulls had a lot of roster turnover with 11 newcomers and they’re one of 29 programs in the country to be represented by at least five countries.
J.J. Starling recently joined the Bulls after previously playing at Notre Dame and Syracuse, but he struggled and scored four points while missing all but one of his five field-goal attempts.
Antoine Lorick III Ied Buffalo with 28 points and 15 rebounds and Steffe scored 19.
“They’re a talented team,” Jackson said. “I thought our intensity and pressure really bothered them early. It can be intimidating. Talked at halftime about continuing to play that way. Had guys flying around and you’ve got 7-2, 7-1 behind them at the rim. Impressed with the defense. Get stops, rebounds, run out and play with pace.”
Marshall had 17 assists and Otshudi led with six.
The Herd had 11 turnovers and the visitors 10. Ten Marshall players scored.
“Took care of the ball and shared it,” Jackson said. “They got a little desperate at the end of the game. We didn’t handle it great. UPike took the fight to us. We didn’t want that to happen again. Told our guys if you’re standing and watching, you’re probably not doing your job.
“You always want to hit first. Strength in numbers. That’s our motto. That’s how we want to play. One day it’s you, one day it’s me. It’s always us. Happy to see each guy come in and contribute. When you build team chemistry, that’s not always easy. They all want to play. At some point, they’ll get their opportunity.”
Marshall returns to action Saturday at home against Toledo, another MAC squad. Tipoff is 2 p.m.
Arkansas State, an SBC member, edged the Rockets, 71-70, on Monday.