Photo by Jake McNeill Salman Osman (left) uses a quick first step to blow by a defender and drive towards the basket in the first half of Marshall’s 72-67 loss in their home opener against Willmar Tuesday night.

MARSHALL – The Marshall boys basketball team never led in their 67-72 home-opener loss against Willmar Tuesday night.

Willmar’s ability to score in the paint was the difference in the game. The Cardinals were able to sink jump shots when they needed to but were rarely forced to take outside jumpers since they were consistently able to drive in close for layups.

“We need to play with more physicality on both ends. Defensively need to do a better job of working together,” Marshall head coach Travis Caroll said.

Offensively, getting the ball in close wasn’t an issue for Marshall, but converting was. They were patient with their shot selection and found ways to penetrate the Willmar interior, but the Cardinals’ size bothered Marshall’s shots.

“Getting the ball inside is something we look to do each game. Willmar did a good job using their length to create some tougher shots,” Carroll said. “They played with some more physicality at times, but our kids did a good job at trying to go up and score.”

Omar Abdi had a big game offensively for Marshall. He finished with a team-high 19 points. Salman Osman also made a big impact with 9 points as well as four assists and three steals, both team-highs.

On the other hand, Marshall did excel at drawing contact. They found themselves in the double bonus early in the first half but struggled to convert the opportunities. Marshall knocked down nine of their 18 free throw attempts.

The second half, however, was quite the opposite. Marshall finished the game with 28 team fouls to Willmar’s 17.

The Tigers went on a 12-0 run with 10 minutes left in the second half. The team made four 3-pointers on the run, including a pair by Alex Franson, to cut the deficit to 4 points, but they were unable to hold on and Willmar pulled away again shortly after that.

Aside from Franson, who made two of his three attempts from deep, the Tigers struggled to knock down shots from behind the arc. The rest of the team converted six of their 26 attempts on the night.

“We just need to try to get more touches inside. When you get that action going at the rim, you’re going to create some opportunities at the perimeter as well,” Carroll said.

Marshall struggled on the boards at point, but Lincoln Graven still made an impact. He finished the game with eight rebounds, including four on the offensive glass.

In the first half, Willmar employed a press from the opening tip that forced Marshall to turn the ball over on several occasions. As Marshall adapted to the press and began to find the holes, Willmar backed off to tighten up the paint, causing further problems for Marshall. The Tigers turned the ball over 17 times on the night to Willmar’s 14.

After trailing by double-digits in the first half, Marshall went on a late run to cut the gap to 34-32 at the break.

A pair of missed free throws following an intentional foul and a driving layup by Franson cut the Willmar lead to 3 points with 30 seconds remaining. Willmar missed the front end of their next pair of free throws but made the second to extend their lead to 4 points and ice the game. Cooper Mensink hit a deep 3-pointer to bring Marshall back within 3, but the six seconds remaining on the clock when Willmar inbounded the ball wasn’t enough time for a Marshall comeback.

The Marshall Tigers (1-1) will continue their three-game homestand when they host Worthington Friday at 7:15 p.m.

Willmar 72, Marshall 67

WIL 42 30

MAR 34 33

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

SCORING (FG-FGA-PTS): MAR (Abdi 6-16-19; Osman 4-11-9; Franson 3-6-8; Graven 3-4-8)

PASSING (AST-TO)L MAR (Osman 4-5; Franson 3-3)

REBOUNDING (ORB-TRB): MAR (Graven 4-8; Osman 1-5; Abdi 4)

DEFENSIVE (STL-BLK): MAR (Osman 3; Abdi 2)