HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Sunday afternoon's exhibition game at Marshall University for the University of Pikeville men's basketball game was the tale of two halves.
 
The Bears led, with a little more than six minutes left in the first half, by 20 points over the team picked to finish seventh in the Sun Belt Conference.
 
But Marshall used a 19-0 run wrapped around the halftime break to pull even and then roared on to a 101-69 win on Sunday.
 
The score was tied twice in the first half, at 11 and 14. The latter came with 13:55 left and led directly to a huge run for the Bears.
 
Graduate student Korbin Spencer got it start with a pair of threes, first from the corner and then from right of the top of the key.
 
After Marshall scored on a layup, the Bears kept it going. Sophomore Bradley Bunch hit a three from the corner before sophomore Kenyan Cutlip got free for a layup. Junior Kyonte Thomas had back-to-back buckets before former Marshall player Jeremy Dillon had a layup off a pass from sophomore Keian Worrix.
 
Bunch nailed a jumper before Dillon fired in a three.
 
In the end, UPike had posted 16 unanswered points and used a 22-2 run to open a 36-16 lead with 6:14 left in the half.
 
But Marshall scored nine straight to end the first half and then posted the first 10 of the second half to take a 41-40 lead on a free throw by grad student Kevon Voyles with 17:02 left.
 
Dillon, however led the Bears back in front. He hit a three from the corner and then had an old-fashion three-point play with 16:14 left to put his team back in front 46-41.
 
The game was tied three times in the second half, including at 54 when Bunch nailed a three with 12:08 to play, before the Thundering Herd pulled away for the win.
 
Spencer led the Bears with 19 points, with Dillon posting 14 in his return to the Cam Henderson Center. He did so shooting 5-of-7 from the field and hitting 3-for-5 from the arc.
 
The Bears also got 13 from Bunch, who was also 3-of-5 from outside. Senior Issac Stanback was limited to six points but had 15 rebounds and four blocked shots.
 
Marshall got 20, five rebounds and five assists from Voyles. Kamdyn Curfman led the Heard with 24, blistering the nets for 6-of-9 shooting from outside. Curfman had 19 of his points after the break.
 
UPike will open the regular season Wednesday, Nov. 8 at Union College in Barbourville. The first home game is Saturday, Nov. 11 when the Bears host Milligan College at the UPike Gym. Tipoff for that is slated for 4 p.m.