Marshall Women’s Basketball Recap
By Sean Kelly, FM88 Sports Director
Jan. 27, 2025
HUNTINGTON, W. Va. (WMUL-FM) — The temperature outside the Cam Henderson Center rose to 43 degrees Sunday afternoon, but the Thundering Herd offense did not warm up down the stretch of a narrow 54-48 loss to the Southern Miss Lady Eagles.
“I think that game, particularly, was a really hard one,” Marshall women’s basketball head coach Juli Fulks said. “We went 8-of-37 from the three-point line, our first group has a bunch of really good shooters, and we were 5-of-30.”
Though the team’s low shooting stats were noted by Fulks following Sunday’s defeat, one performance stood out from the opening quarter. Senior guard Aislynn Hayes led the way from an early stage, scoring half of Marshall’s 10 first quarter points while the team trailed by just one point after the first 10 minutes.
“I thought early in the game we got some wide-open looks, and in terms of rebounding, gave ourselves some second looks,” Fulks said. “She (Aislynn Hayes) got a bunch of offensive boards and got some easy looks that way.”
Hayes finished the game with 26 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists, with her 26 points being a team high and most of all players in Sunday’s contest.
The Herd continued to keep it close entering halftime, leading by as much as six points midway through the second quarter. Though the home side shot just 22% in the first half, it thrived off of defensive opportunities, scoring 14 of its 19 first half points from turnovers.
Fulks was also impressed by how the Herd’s defense stacked up against three-point shooting, a category in which the Lady Eagles rank top five in the Sun Belt Conference.
“In terms of their efficiency, that’s a team that shoots 35% from the three-point line, including some starters that are well above that number. We were really dialed in on taking away the three-point line, and then helping on Grayson from the right spots,” Fulks said. “We held them to eight attempts from the three-point line, which is an awesome effort defensively. We’ve been really focused on that, and that showed.”
Though it remained a defensive battle into the third quarter, Marshall’s shooting woes also continued despite putting itself in an opportunity to create open shots.
“We drove them (Southern Miss) to the zone, which in theory is a really good thing for our team because it allows our shooters to get open,” Fulks said. “We got really good looks and they did not go in, so when that happens you go to the offensive boards. We got 60% of our misses in the third quarter and 66% of them in the fourth quarter.”
Marshall’s field goal percentage rose to a high of 37.5% in the third quarter, but overall, the team shot 10-for-31 in the second half, leading to Sunday’s six-point loss. Going just 21% from beyond the arc and 26% overall, Sunday’s game was the first time the Herd shot under 30% in a game since December 29th against the Texas State Bobcats.
The Thundering Herd end its four-game homestand with a 1-3 record, seeking its first road win of the season this Wednesday against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers. Overall, the Herd fall to an overall record of 6-14 while sitting at 1-8 in the conference, as the Lady Eagles rise to 7-13 overall and 3-6 in Sun Belt play.