Staff report
HUNTINGTON — Damier Pitts converted two free throws after a technical foul call with one second left Tuesday to give Marshall a 90-88 victory over Western Carolina in the Thundering Herd’s first postseason men’s basketball game in 22 years.
Pitts saved a late-game meltdown in the opening-round matchup of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament.
After the Catamounts’ Brandon Giles tied the game 88-88 with a three-pointer, Harouna Mutombo stole the ball from Marshall’s Tyler Wilkerson but was called for the technical foul with one tick on the clock.
Pitts’ two free throws capped Marshall’s string of 11-of-14 made foul shots in the game’s final three minutes at the Cam Henderson Center.
That kept the Herd (24-9) in the game despite going without a field goal in the last 2:39. Meanwhile, Western Carolina (22-12) erased a 79-68 Marshall lead, as Jake Robinson scored nine points down the stretch.
Pitts scored 24 points, going 15-for-16 at the foul line, and Dago Pena added 18 points for Marshall.
Freshman Hassan Whiteside had five blocks, five rebounds and three points in 16 minutes of action.
Robinson was Western Carolina’s top scorer with 21 points. He shot exclusively from three-point range, making six of 11 attempts.
The two teams were tied 37-37 at halftime.
Marshall moves on to host a second-round game on Monday, March 22 against a team to be determined.
