Herd Women Fall to East Carolina in Regular Season Finale, 75-70
Special to Huntingtonnews.net
Huntington, WV (HNN) – The Thundering Herd women’s basketball team cut a 15-point halftime deficit to just a point, but it was not enough as East Carolina came away with a 75-70 win in Wednesday’s (March 3, 2010) regular season finale at the Cam Henderson Center.
Tynikki Crook led Marshall (14-15, 6-10 C-USA) with 21 points before fouling out in the second half. East Carolina (20-9, 9-7 C-USA) was led by a 19-point performance from Jean Best.
It was a close game in the early going as the lead changed hands three times in the opening minutes, however, with Marshall up 11-8 with 13 minutes left in the first half, East Carolina went on a 14-0 run while keeping the Herd scoreless over a span of over six minutes.
Jean Best of ECU tallied five points in the run, which was finally halted when Chantelle Handy jump chucked a three-pointer to make it a 22-14 game in favor of the Pirates.
East Carolina kept the pedal on the metal for the remainder of the period, stretching its lead to 15 points at the half. The Pirates hit 5-of-12 three-pointers in the half, including two in the final minute to establish a 39-24 advantage at the break.
One of the major factors in the first half was rebounding as the Pirates took a 21-12 lead on the glass in the first half while outshooting the Herd, .536-.357. Tynikki Crook scored 11 in the first half to lead all players.
Crook picked up right where she left off in the second half, scoring the first five points for Marshall as it opened the stanza on a 14-4 run to cut the lead to five, 43-38, less than five minutes into the half.
Marshall kept the run going. With ECU up 54-50, a three-pointer by Mystee Dale got the Herd within a point, but from there it was all Pirates as they extended their lead back up to as many as eight points before taking the five-point win.
Crook led all players with 21 points and was the top rebounder for MU with seven boards. Kendra King notched 14 while Handy finished with 11. Handy also dished out six assists. Dale was the final double-digit scorer for the Herd, tallying ten points.
Best was the top scorer for ECU with 19 points while Kim Gay notched 13.
The Pirates finished with a .542-.450 shooting advantage and also outrebounded the Herd, 32-27. The game marked the final home game for three seniors; Handy, King and Angelica Harris.
Tonight’s game wrapped up the regular season for the Herd as it will head to the Conference USA Tournament, beginning on Monday in Tulsa, Okla. Its first round opponent will be determined following play on Thursday evening.
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