Marshall hits C-USA tourney-record 19 3s, advances to finals (Mar 10, 2017)
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) Jon Elmore scored 21 points on seven 3-pointers, Ryan Taylor had his 40th career double-double and No. 6 seed Marshall hit a Conference USA Tournament-record 19 3s on Friday to beat Louisiana Tech 93-77.
Taylor finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds, while Stevie Browning and Austin Loop each scored 18 points for Marshall (20-14), which will play No. 1 seed Middle Tennessee in the championship game Saturday. Browning added six rebounds and seven assists.
Omar Sherman made a jumper and then a layup give No. 2 seed Louisiana Tech a 6-3 lead, but Elmore answered with a 3 to spark an 11-2 run and the Thundering Herd never again trailed. Marshall made 14 of its school-record 19 3s in the first half and led 49-41 at the break. A jumper by Erik McCree pulled the Bulldogs to 75-69 with 5:28 to go, but Taylor scored six points while C.J. Burks hit a 3 and converted a 3-point play during a 12-4 run over the next three-plus minutes that essentially sealed it.
DaQuan Bracey and McCree scored 16 apiece for Louisiana Tech (23-10).
