Second-Half Struggles Sink Statesmen

For the first half of its contest against Fairfax, the Marshall boys basketball team executed its game plan perfectly – press the Rebels hard, push the tempo and connect on outside shots. The result was a one-point deficit at the break.

But the second half was a different story, as fatigue and foul trouble sent the Statesmen to an 82-65 defeat Friday in Liberty District play.

Marshall got off to a strong start thanks to solid play from Mo Samantar, who tallied 13 first-half points. But Fairfax clamped down on Samantar in the second half, allowing him just four free throws as the Statesmen couldn't find a way to muster any offense.

"We got tired – we were pressing so hard in the first half, we just ran out of gas," Marshall coach Dan Hale said. "Fairfax did a nice job of making us work hard."

The big swing in the game for Marshall (1-5 overall, 0-1 Liberty) occurred with 6:25 remaining in the third, when big man Tim Richards picked up his fourth foul, and the smaller Statesmen essentially had to cede the paint for the remainder of the contest.

"That was tough," Hale said. "Timmy did a great job – he was single-handedly trying to control those trees in there, but once he got into foul trouble, we struggled from there."

The lingering effects of a concussion left Fairfax's Jazz Holley on the bench at the start of the game, but the 6-foot-1 junior forward finished with a game-high 21 points.

"Jazz had the concussion and since he was not at practice, we just weren't sure," Rebels coach P.J. Kelly said. "But obviously, he's one of our best players."

Holley started his big night with a tip-in at the end of the first quarter, and from there made easy pickings of the Statesmen's interior defense.

"Our guards would penetrate and so the defense would have to step up, and I'd automatically be open," Holley said. "I just finished. It was a good job on my guards' part – good teamwork."

Holley's play helped break open a tight game in the second half, as he and fellow big man Matt Frank controlled the paint as the Rebels (2-4, 1-1) broke open a 36-35 halftime edge by scoring 24 points in the third quarter.

"I'm happy because we played unselfishly," Kelly said.

In the second half, what little offense Marshall could muster came from senior Sheldon Hardy, who 15 of his 17 points after halftime, equaling the output of the rest of his teammates.

"Shelton came in and did what we asked him to do. He gave us some nice energy and good offense when other guys got tired," Hale said. "It was a real positive for us."

And even though his squad was on the short end of a district contest, Hale said his team could take something away from the loss.

"I really liked our effort," he said. "We're going to be undersized, we know that, so we have to continue to keep the pressure on. I was proud – we battled until the end."