Herd downs WKU
Published 12:58 am Sunday, February 12, 2017
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) — Jon Elmore scored 32 points and grabbed nine rebounds, Austin Loop sank six 3s and finished with 20 points, and Marshall held on for an 84-79 win over Western Kentucky on Saturday night.
Elmore finished 5 of 7 from beyond the arc and 10 of 16 overall for Marshall (14-11, 7-5 Conference USA), which hit 14 of 24 from distance to snap a three-game skid.
Trailing 77-61 with 6:10 remaining, Que Johnson converted consecutive 3-point plays to get Western Kentucky (12-13, 6-6) within 10.
Elmore made two free throws to give the Herd an 82-73 lead with 1:30 left to play, but back-to-back 3s from Johnson got the Hilltoppers within three, 82-79, with 51 seconds left.
Johnson, who finished with 17 points, missed a potential game-tying 3 with 16 seconds left, and Elmore made a pair of free throws a second later to put the game on ice.
Justin Johnson totaled 14 points and 11 rebounds for Western Kentucky, and Pancake Thomas added 13 points.
Marshall led by as many as 23 points in the second half.