Damier Pitts was able to see the bright side. Marshall lost its non-conference Capital Classic men's basketball game Wednesday against West Virginia University, but didn't lose its grip on first place in Conference USA.
"We've definitely got to move on from the loss," said Pitts, the Thundering Herd senior point guard. "We didn't want to go out there and lose, but we're the only undefeated team in the conference and I guess that's a plus from losing."
Marshall, at 13-5 overall, is 4-0 in C-USA with a one-half game lead on UCF (4-1) after defeating the Knights last weekend.
Southern Miss, 16-3 for the season and one game back in the standings at 3-1 with a conference loss at Memphis, welcomes Marshall
The Golden Eagles checked in Friday at No. 16 in the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index while the Herd was No. 43.
"A big challenge," Marshall head coach Tom Herrion said. "They're playing really well and it's a tough place to play. They're good at home like a lot of teams."
Southern Miss is 9-0 at home this season.
WVU's rebounding domination in the Capital Classic was impressive, as Marshall was beaten on the boards for the first time in the season, 37-27. Marshall's NCAA-leading average rebounding margin of 11.2 per game dipped to 10.0.
Losing the rebound battle was painful, but Pitts said a defensive letdown hurt more. WVU made 61.5 percent of its shots in a 78-62 game that was tied, 30-30, at halftime.
"I can't say rebounding cost us the game," Pitts said. "We couldn't get stops in the second half. Especially late. They were running the shot clock down and we couldn't get stops when we needed them."
Southern Miss is extremely balanced with junior guard LaShay Page leading five players with double-figure scoring averages.
Page has a 13.3 average followed by senior guard Darnell Dodson (12.3), forward Maurice Bolden (11.1), point guard Angelo Johnson (10.8) and guard Neil Watson (10.3).
Dodson is a 6-foot-7 transfer from Kentucky who became eligible in December.
Bolden is 6-10 and plays inside and outside. He leads the team with 6.2 rebounds a game and is also the most accurate 3-point shooter at 43.9 percent on 18 of 41.
The Golden Eagles are another good rebounding team.
"Southern Miss is going to be tough," Pitts said. "They play real hard and they're at home. We've got to be ready when we go in there."
Marshall's Dre Kane, a 6-4 sophomore guard named to the preseason All-CUSA first team, is backing up his reputation with all-conference statistics. Kane leads the Herd and is third in conference scoring at 13.5 per contest. In the conference he ranks 16th in rebounds (5.7), eighth in assists (3.6) and sixth in steals (1.6).
Pitts is scoring 13.5 a game and averaging 4.7 assists, which is second in C-USA. Herd forward Dennis Tinnon averages 9.7 points and 10.8 rebounds.
Tinnon's rebound average is ninth in the nation. Rice forward Arsalan Kazemi (11.7) and the 6-8 Marshall junior are one-two in the conference.
Kane led Marshall against WVU with 25 points and Pitts scored 15. Tinnon had 10 rebounds in his 13th double-figure game.
Marshall has lost seven consecutive times in the game following the Capital Classic, including last season when the Herd blew a 12-point halftime lead and fell to East Carolina, 82-81.
Southern Miss had a full week to prepare since its last game, a 59-55 win over UAB.
"We've definitely got to move on from the loss," said Pitts, the Thundering Herd senior point guard. "We didn't want to go out there and lose, but we're the only undefeated team in the conference and I guess that's a plus from losing."
Marshall, at 13-5 overall, is 4-0 in C-USA with a one-half game lead on UCF (4-1) after defeating the Knights last weekend.
Southern Miss, 16-3 for the season and one game back in the standings at 3-1 with a conference loss at Memphis, welcomes Marshall
The Golden Eagles checked in Friday at No. 16 in the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index while the Herd was No. 43.
"A big challenge," Marshall head coach Tom Herrion said. "They're playing really well and it's a tough place to play. They're good at home like a lot of teams."
Southern Miss is 9-0 at home this season.
WVU's rebounding domination in the Capital Classic was impressive, as Marshall was beaten on the boards for the first time in the season, 37-27. Marshall's NCAA-leading average rebounding margin of 11.2 per game dipped to 10.0.
Losing the rebound battle was painful, but Pitts said a defensive letdown hurt more. WVU made 61.5 percent of its shots in a 78-62 game that was tied, 30-30, at halftime.
"I can't say rebounding cost us the game," Pitts said. "We couldn't get stops in the second half. Especially late. They were running the shot clock down and we couldn't get stops when we needed them."
Southern Miss is extremely balanced with junior guard LaShay Page leading five players with double-figure scoring averages.
Page has a 13.3 average followed by senior guard Darnell Dodson (12.3), forward Maurice Bolden (11.1), point guard Angelo Johnson (10.8) and guard Neil Watson (10.3).
Dodson is a 6-foot-7 transfer from Kentucky who became eligible in December.
Bolden is 6-10 and plays inside and outside. He leads the team with 6.2 rebounds a game and is also the most accurate 3-point shooter at 43.9 percent on 18 of 41.
The Golden Eagles are another good rebounding team.
"Southern Miss is going to be tough," Pitts said. "They play real hard and they're at home. We've got to be ready when we go in there."
Marshall's Dre Kane, a 6-4 sophomore guard named to the preseason All-CUSA first team, is backing up his reputation with all-conference statistics. Kane leads the Herd and is third in conference scoring at 13.5 per contest. In the conference he ranks 16th in rebounds (5.7), eighth in assists (3.6) and sixth in steals (1.6).
Pitts is scoring 13.5 a game and averaging 4.7 assists, which is second in C-USA. Herd forward Dennis Tinnon averages 9.7 points and 10.8 rebounds.
Tinnon's rebound average is ninth in the nation. Rice forward Arsalan Kazemi (11.7) and the 6-8 Marshall junior are one-two in the conference.
Kane led Marshall against WVU with 25 points and Pitts scored 15. Tinnon had 10 rebounds in his 13th double-figure game.
Marshall has lost seven consecutive times in the game following the Capital Classic, including last season when the Herd blew a 12-point halftime lead and fell to East Carolina, 82-81.
Southern Miss had a full week to prepare since its last game, a 59-55 win over UAB.
