— By Bill Cornwell
After an encouraging second-half performance in Monday’s 84-74 loss at Ohio State, Marshall returns to the Buckeye State for Saturday’s 1 p.m. contest at Youngstown State inside Zidian Family Arena at Beeghley Center.
The matchup was moved up from its originally scheduled 6 p.m. start in an effort to accommodate the YSU football game moving back to a 4:30 p.m. kickoff as a result of Friday’s national ground stop on flights.
After trailing by 18 at halftime on Monday, Marshall (1-2) scored 47 points over the final 20 minutes and outscored the Buckeyes by eight during that time.
“Our message before the game was to stay the course and have poise in the noise,” Jackson said. “They’re physical and they’re a Big Ten team, so we talked about being poised. I thought our whole organization stayed poised from coaches to players and managers. I’m proud of the way we competed.
“We came here expecting to win. We didn’t come to Columbus to go to the Columbus Zoo.”
Now the Herd looks to build off that effort when facing the Penguins for the first time since 2005. This is Marshall’s first game in Youngstown since 1949.
YSU opened the regular season with a 79-71 win at St. Bonaventure, followed by losses at Ohio State, 89-65, and at Central Michigan, 91-78.
The Penguins are coached by Ethan Faulkner, who is in his third season with that title. He has a 37-32 record.
Youngstown’s top scorer is Linus Holmstrom, a 6-foot-3 junior from Sweden averaging 14.3 points. Holmstrom does most of his damage from long range and is 11 for 26 on 3-pointers among 14 field goals on 30 attempts.
Kelvin Amoako and Jeff Nwankwo are the team’s top rebounders at 6.3.
YSU freshman guard Jacob Holbrook played at Boyd County High School in Ashland, Ky., which is located just 20 miles from Huntington.
Noah Otshudi leads the Thundering Herd with an average of 21.7 points and is shooting 55.3 percent from the field. Otshudi poured in 27 points on 12-for-18 shooting in the loss to the Buckeyes.
Bryce Slay is averaging 19 points, while Fazl Oshodi is scoring 10 on average.
Following Saturday’s affair with the Penguins, Marshall returns home Tuesday for a contest against East Tennessee State.
After the YSU contest, Marshall will be back home on Tuesday to face East Tennessee State.
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Marshall has signed 6-foot-8 forward Thomas Cochran of Dublin, Ohio, to its 2027 recruit class.
“We are excited to officially welcome Thomas to our Marshall basketball family,” Jackson said. “Thomas brings the kind of character, work ethic, and competitive spirit that fits the culture we’re building in Huntington. His commitment to excellence both on and off the court reflects the standards of our program and we’re thrilled to have him join our team.”
Cochran attends Dublin Coffman High School and has played for NOVA Village in Columbus on the AAU circuit as well.
Cochran had a standout junior season, being named by the Ohio Prep Sports Media Association to the 2026 Division I All-Ohio Boys Basketball Team Special Mention after averaging 19 points. He also earned Ohio Capital Conference-Central Division First Team honors and was named to the District 10 Super Team last season.