Joe Miles hit a 16-foot jump shot with 5.2 seconds to play to help Marshall rally from a 12-point second-half deficit and edge High Point, 74-73, Tuesday night at the Cam Henderson Center.
The Panthers drop to 3-8, while the Thundering Herd improves to 2-6. HPU fell despite leading for all but 60 seconds of the final 20 minutes.
Zione White poured in a season-best 22 points for High Point, while Jerry Echenique tied a career-high with 21 points and added 11 boards for his fourth-career double-double.
Echenique had given the Panthers a 73-72 lead on a layup with 16.4 seconds left. Following Miles' jumper, Titus Byrd had a shot to win it for High Point, but his long-range jumper bounced off the rim and the Herd escaped.
There were five lead changes in the final 2:33 of the contest. High Point led 40-32 at the break.
Marshall missed its first nine shots from the field and spotted the Panthers a 5-0 lead before using a 12-0 run to jump out to a 14-7 advantage. The Herd led by as many as eight points early (17-9) before Echenique flexed some muscle down low and pulled HPU within 21-19 on a layup with 9:46 left in the first half.
The Panthers had trouble taking care of the ball early on, but turned the ball over just once in the final 7:30 of the half and surged ahead 26-25 on two Echenique free throws with 6:04 to play.
After Miles helped the Herd re-take a 28-26 lead moments later on a trey, HPU closed the half on a 14-4 run which included an NBA-range three from White in the final minute to send the Panthers to intermission with a 40-32 lead.
High Point built a 10-point advantage after Echenique scored on a nice reverse layup for a 44-34 lead in the opening minutes of the second half, but the Herd scored the next seven points to claw within 44-41 on a dunk by Tre Whitted which brought the green-clad crowd to its feet.
But the Panthers responded with a 9-0 run that featured five points by White and gave HPU its biggest lead at 53-41 following a layup by Mark Wilson with 14:20 to go.
The Herd cut the deficit to seven on two different occasions, but wasn't able to get any closer until A.W. Hamilton scored and drew a foul to pull Marshall within 64-57 at the 7:37 mark. Hamilton missed the ensuing free throw but got the rebound when Miles tipped the loose ball to him, and Hamilton drained a three from the top of the key to make it 64-60.
The Panthers stretched their lead back to seven points after a Wilson layup with 4:11 to play gave HPU a 68-61 advantage, but Marshall outscored the Panthers 9-1 over the next two minutes to claim a 70-69 lead on Miles' layup with 2:33 left. It was the Herd's first lead since the 5:36 mark of the first half.
HPU couldn't capitalize on its next trip down, but a steal by Issa Konaré (eight rebounds) led to an Echenique layup with 1:38 to play that put the Panthers back in front, 71-70.
Hamilton helped Marshall re-gain the lead with a fadeaway jumper with 23.7 seconds to play for a 72-71 cushion, but Echenique came right back and took a pass from Byrd for a layup with 16.7 seconds left and a 73-72 HPU edge.
After a Marshall timeout, Miles drove through the lane and hit the winning shot with 5.2 seconds left. With both teams out of timeouts, the Panthers immediately inbounded and Byrd drove the length of the court, but his jumper bounced away and time expired.
High Point held the edge in almost all statistical categories, outrebounding the Herd 47-40 and outshooting Marshall 42 percent to 36 percent. The Panthers did commit 20 turnovers to Marshall's 11.
Danny Gathings chipped in 10 points and six rebounds and Wilson had nine points and six rebounds, while Byrd tallied a game-high eight assists.
Whitted led Marshall with 16 points. Miles came off the bench and was one rebond shy of a double-double (nine boards). Hamilton and Mark Patton (12 points apiece) also scored in double-figures.
The Panthers return to action on Wednesday, Dec. 29, at James Madison (2-5). Tip-off in Harrisonburg, Va., is set for 7:00 pm EST. To read the game notes, click the link below.
