Northern Kentucky University Athletics

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HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – After watching Northern Kentucky University build a 32-27 halftime lead with a 3-point shooting barrage, Marshall University toughened up defensively en route to a 65-55 win Tuesday night.

Marshall scored the first 14 points of the second half to highlight a game-changing 25-3 run that turned a 32-27 deficit into a 52-35 lead. The Thundering Herd held NKU to one field goal during the first 11 minutes of the second half and coasted to the victory in the exhibition game.

“We played an excellent first half, but Marshall hit us with that big run to open the second half and it was the difference in the game,” NKU head coach Dave Bezold said.
Jon Van Hoose (left) ignited NKU's first-half attack from long range by draining a trio of 3-pointers and scoring 11 of his 17 points. The Norse were 7-for-19 from 3-point range in the opening half and led by as many as 11 points before taking the 32-27 advantage into the locker room.

Marshall was held to just 28 percent shooting from the field in the first half, while NKU made 41.4 percent of its attempts.

In the second half, however, Marshall turned up the defensive pressure and NKU made just one of its first 12 shots from the field. The Thundering Herd, meanwhile, used a 14-0 run to build a 41-32 lead on Dennis Tinnon's layup with 15:06 remaining in the game.

A 3-pointer by Tony Rack stopped the Marshall run, but the Thundering Herd responded by scoring the next 11 points to extend the lead to 52-35. Justin Coleman scored 10 points to key the 25-3 run, and he capped it with a monstrous dunk off a baseline drive with 9:41 left.

Coleman finished with 15 points for Marshall, which posted a 22-12 record last season and advanced to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament. Shaquille Johnson scored 16 points to lead the Thundering Herd, who shot 56 percent from the field in the second half and finished with a 48-30 rebounding advantage.

Tinnon collected a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, while teammate Robert Goff added 10 rebounds and five blocked shots.

DeAndre Nealy scored 12 points and grabbed seven rebounds in his NKU debut. Rack finished with nine points for the Norse, while Ethan Faulkner added six points, seven assists, seven steals and six rebounds.

NKU continues its exhibition schedule Friday night with a game at West Virginia University in Morgantown, W.Va. The tip is set for 7 p.m.

West Virginia finished 21-12 last season and made its fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance under head coach Bob Huggins.