HUNTINGTON, WV (WTKR)- For the third consecutive season, Old Dominion men's basketball will lose at least 20 games.
KC Shaw scored 26 points and Jordan Battle added 24 points, but it wasn't enough, as Marshall topped the Monarchs, 97-88, completing the season sweep of ODU. The silver and blue fell to 10-20, 6-11 in Sun Belt play.
The Thundering Herd opened up a 39-26 first half lead, but ODU chipped away, cutting the deficit to 45-40 with 1:11 remaining in the frame. The Monarchs would head into the locker room at halftime, trailing 49-42.
The second half would see Marshall swell its advantage to 14 points, but again ODU had a response. The Monarchs trimmed the deficit to 80-75 with 7:27 remaining in the game. However, the Herd's final surge was too much to overcome. Marshall opened the lead back up to 14 points with two minutes to play and Old Dominion did not have time to recover in the loss.
In addition to his 26 points, Shaw led the Monarchs with seven rebounds. Cal Swanton-Rodger chipped in 17 points in the losing cause. Wyatt Fricks led four Marshall players in double figures with a game-high 28 points as the Thundering Herd shot 60 percent from the floor for the game.
ODU will suffer 20 or more defeats for the third straight season. The Monarchs finished the 2023-2024 schedule 7-25, 3-15 in Sun Belt play, and followed that up with a 15-20 showing, 8-10 in the conference, during Mike Jones's first campaign leading the program.
The Monarchs will cap off the regular season Friday at Georgia State. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
