Just two nights after struggling to hold on to a big lead against Northern Illinois, the UB men's basketball team had to come from behind to defeat the Marshall Thundering Herd.
The Bulls (12-5, 5-4 MAC) used a career-high 25 points from center Yassin Idbihi and a stingy second-half defense that held Marshall (3-14, 0-8 MAC) without a point for over nine minutes to pull away with a 78-65 win in front of 3,114 at Alumni Arena.
Trailing by four at the half, and by as many as seven in the second session, UB head coach Reggie Witherspoon did something very unusual, switching to a zone defense. His team responded. After Marshall took a 58-54 lead with 9:03 to play in regulation, UB went on a 17-0 tear, holding the Herd without a point for over eight minutes.
"We haven't played zone all year," said Bulls senior Turner Battle. "In the first half, we were playing man-to-man and getting stops, but not scoring. Once we switched, their threes got longer and longer. We know if we talk, touch and move, we can get it done."
"When I first called it, the guys definitely looked at me like I had three heads," said Witherspoon.
Battle himself was a triple threat, having an unusual night for a point guard with nine rebounds, six in the second half. It complemented flawless, 7-for-7 free throw shooting and a 20-point night.
"When you see him get that many rebounds, it looks like I came up with some excellent strategy, but that's not X's and O's, it's Jims and Joes," Witherspoon said.
UB needed everything Battle gave them after the Herd came out firing. Led by senior guard A.W. Hamilton's three first-half 3-pointers, Marshall connected on 39 percent of their 18 attempts in the opening session.
Combined with a wide variety of slick playground moves from promising freshman guard Joe Miles, who led the Herd with 14 points on the night, the Herd was able to take a 41-37 lead into the locker room at halftime.
"It's a big part of our game. If we're open, we want that shot," said Marshall guard Ronny Dawn, who had three threes and 13 points on the night.
UB had an answer in junior guard Calvin Cage, who hit three of his five 3-pointers in the first half. All three came after Marshall had expanded their lead on the previous possession, helping to keep the Bulls within striking distance.
"We knew that they had been in a lot of their games this year," Cage said. "We withstood their initial blows, and pulled it off at the end.
When the Herd was able to manage the perimeter, Idbihi was a force, collecting six of his eight rebounds on offense, and shooting 63 percent from the floor. When he wasn't putting back missed shots, he was using a variety of moves, drives and shots to get to the basket, also connecting on his only 3-point attempt of the night.
"We need Yassin to play that way," said Witherspoon. "He did a good job of making their zone guard the interior, and a good job of staying active."
The Bulls really made their move after Miles hit a 3-pointer to put Marshall up 50-43. After Cage hit another three, Jason Bird threw up a pass that Bortz slammed home, sending the Mighty Maniacs into an uproar.
"It's a backside seal," Battle said. "Bortz always says, 'Just throw it up. I promise I'll catch it.' Jason Bird threw him a pass and he caught it and dunked it."
The loudest ovation of all was saved for the final minute of the game, when red-shirt freshman Andrew Atman and sophomore Brian Andre entered the game. It was Atman's first time on the collegiate hardwood.
Marshall returns home to host Kent State on Tuesday, while UB's next game is Saturday at Eastern Michigan. Tip-off in Ypsilanti is at 7 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
