ELON, N.C. – A new career-high 29 points for sophomore Nick Dorn along with a double-double from senior Sam Sherry helped the Elon University men's basketball team to a 73-59 victory over Marshall on Saturday night, Dec. 28, at Schar Center.

The win improved the Phoenix to 9-4 on the season, giving Elon its most non-conference wins during the regular season since 2015-16. The Phoenix's .692 win percentage is the best for the program during the non-conference regular season at the Division I level.
 
Dorn went 9-of-15 from the floor and knocked down 6-of-10 from beyond the arc, also matching a career best. Sherry added 17 points and pulled down 13 boards for his second double-double in as many games and his third overall on the season. TJ Simpkins put in 13 points for Elon and led the Phoenix with five assists.
 
Marshall (7-7) saw Mikal Dawson lead the way with 24 points. Obinna Anochili-Killen had 16 points for the Thundering Herd.
 
THE RUNDOWN
• Elon opened the game with a 9-4 lead after the first four minutes of the contest. Matthew Van Komen scored a couple of buckets in the opening minutes of the game along with a three from Dorn and a layup from Sherry. Marshall however stuck around and trailed by two, 11-9, going into the first media timeout.
• Marshall took the lead, 13-11, after a dunk from Wyatt Fricks with 13:26 left in the first half. Elon retook the lead on the next possession after Dorn responded with a three. The Thundering Herd went up again, but the Phoenix came back with a rebound putback from Andrew King and a three from Sherry to go ahead by four, 19-14.
• A three-pointer from Dawson brought the Thundering Herd within two, 23-21, with 6:22 left in the first period. A 14-2 run from Elon helped the maroon and gold expand its lead to 37-23, after six consecutive points from Simpkins. Marshall ended the half on a 5-0 run to cut its deficit to single digits, 37-28, going into the break.
• Dawson pulled Marshall within six, 37-31, after another triple to start the second half. Both teams traded buckets until Dawson converted an and-one with 14:13 left to play to pull the Thundering Herd within four, 42-38.
• Elon answered with an 8-0 run go back in front, 50-38. Dorn sparked the run with his fourth three of the game followed by a pair of free throws from Brayden Crump. A free throw and a driving layup by Simpkins gave the Phoenix the 12-point advantage with 12:24 left to play.
• The Thundering Herd would cut it to a single-digit game, 54-45, after a turnaround jumper from Anochili-Killen. Elon however came back with a 9-1 run to go ahead 63-46 capped off by three free throws from Crump. The Phoenix's advantage would get as large as 18 in the second half before the maroon and gold closed out the game with the 73-59 victory.
 
NOTES
• Van Komen had a team-high 14 rebounds for the Phoenix, matching his season high. The Lehi, Utah, native scored six points with three blocked shots in 23 minutes.
• Elon held the Thundering Herd to 31 percent shooting (21-of-68) and only 20 percent from three-point range. It is the fifth game this season that the Phoenix has held an opponent to less than 35 percent from the field.
• Saturday was the first-ever meeting on the basketball floor between Elon and Marshall.
• The Phoenix improved to 5-0 on its home floor at Schar Center and ended the month of December with a 5-1 ledger overall.
• Dorn had his fifth game of the season with at least four or more three-pointers including his second contest this season with six. The Charlotte, native also knocked down six triples versus Navy on Nov. 30.
• Over his last two games, Sherry is averaging 22.5 points per game while pulling down 13.5 boards per contest. The Mechanicsburg, Pa., native is shooting 50 percent from the floor during that stretch (13-of-26), 4-of-7 from downtown and 15-of-19 from the charity stripe.
 
UP NEXT
The start of the CAA is next on the docket for the Phoenix as Elon travels to North Carolina A&T on Thursday, Jan. 2. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will stream on FloCollege.