HUNTINGTON, W.Va – UNI men’s basketball rode a first half wave of momentum into the second half, defeating the Thundering Herd of Marshall University 75-60 at the Cam Henderson Center on Saturday afternoon.
The Panthers improve to 4-5 on the season with a mark of 0-1 in Missouri Valley Conference play. Marshall drops their second straight contest to fall to 7-5. UNI also improves to 2-0 all-time against the Thundering Herd.
Marshall jumped out to a 12-point lead late into the first half thanks to the play of Obinna Anochili-Killen’s 22 points and three blocked shots. UNI’s defense would force 10 Marshall turnovers to use a 12-0 run over the final six and a half minutes to tie the game at 29. The Thundering Herd would take a 36-34 lead into the halftime break.
AJ Green gave the Panthers their first lead of the day on a pair of free throws early in the second half before Trae Berhow sank back-to-back three-point field goals. UNI’s offense would not look back, shooting 51.7% from the floor with 18 second half points by Green. The Panther defense also continued to pressure Marshall in the second frame, forcing seven additional turnovers and outscoring the Thundering Herd 18-8 in points off of turnovers on the afternoon.
Green finished the day with a game-high 29 points, moving into 10th on UNI’s all-time scoring list. Trae Berhow joined the program’s 1,000-point club with an eight-point performance, while Nate Heise and Cole Henry both scored 12 points each. Noah Carter notched seven points in the win, with Tytan Anderson pulling down a career-high nine rebounds.
PANTHER NOTES
UNI outrebounded Marshall 41-28 in Saturday’s win, and outscored the Thundering Herd 36-18 in the paint.
The Panthers improve to 8-2 against Conference-USA opponents under head coach Ben Jacobson.
AJ Green recorded his 18th career game of 25 or more points on Saturday, including his third this season.
AJ Green made three shots from beyond the arc, passing Ben Jacobson for second on UNI’s career three-point field goal list with 205. Matt Bohannon is the program’s all-time leader in made three-pointers with 268.
Cole Henry’s seven rebounds against Marshall were a career-high, breaking his previous high-water mark of five.
Trae Berhow notched four steals on Saturday afternoon, setting a new career-high.
UP NEXT
The Panthers head west to Hawaii as they prepare for the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu. UNI will open up tournament play against the Liberty Flames on Wednesday at 2 p.m. CT.
