Nov. 28, 2009

Final Stats

ATHENS, Ohio-Marshall forward Hassan Whiteside narrowly missed a triple-double as the Thundering Herd defeated Ohio 60-53 Saturday evening at the Charleston Civic Center. Both teams finished the game with 4-1 records.

Whiteside recorded 14 points, 17 rebounds and nine blocks to go with 7-11 shooting from the floor to lead the victors. Tyler Wilkerson added 10 points and seven boards, while Shaquille Johnson chipped in four assists.

Ohio was led by Tommy Freeman, the Bobcats’ fifth different leading scorer this season, who had 16 points on 4-8 shooting (all 3s) from the field. D.J. Cooper had 15 points and three steals, the same number recorded by Armon Bassett, who made his Bobcat debut Saturday. DeVaughn Washington was Ohio’s leading rebounder with seven.

The Herd controlled the paint, outrebounding Ohio 48-38 and outscoring the Bobcats 34-18 in the paint.

Johnson’s free throws with 8:09 left in the first half put Marshall on top 15-14 and his 3-pointer three minutes into the second half gave Marshall its largest lead at 37-23. The Bobcats gradually clawed their way back into the game, cutting the Herd lead to four on three occasions, the last on a pair of Washington free throws with 20 seconds left (57-53). Wilkerson hit three free throws on ensuing possessions for the game’s final margin.

The Bobcats will head to Tulsa for a 3 p.m. ET (2 p.m. CT) tip Sunday afternoon.