Marshall’s men’s basketball team takes a step outside conference play to face West Virginia in the annual Chesapeake Energy Capital Classic at the Civic Center in Charleston Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
The game will be televised throughout the state on WOWK, WBOY, WTRF, WVNS and WJAL. It will be shown nationally on ESPN Gameplan as well as ESPN3.com. John Sanders will be calling the action with Frank Giardina serving as the color analyst.
The two teams have similar records as the Thundering Herd enters Wednesday 13-4 overall and 4-0 in Conference USA following its 65-64 win over UCF Saturday. The Mountaineers are 13-5 overall and 4-2 in the Big East following an 84-60 win over Rutgers.
Marshall is led in scoring by sophomore guard DeAndre Kane with 15.9 points per game. Junior forward Dennis Tinnon is nearly averaging a double-double on the season with 9.9 points and 10.9 rebounds per game. He also leads the nation with 4.9 offensive rebounds per game.
Ranking second in offensive rebounds is West Virginia’s Kevin Jones. The senior forward ranks fifth in the nation in rebounds with 11.6 per game and is second with 4.6 offensive boards. Jones also ranks 15th in the nation in scoring with 20.1 points per game.
As a team, Marshall ranks first in the nation with 17.6 offensive rebounds per game and also first in rebounding margin (+11.2).
It will be the 40th meeting between the only two NCAA Division I schools in the state. The Mountaineers lead the all-time series 28-11. Last season, Marshall defeated then-No. 21 West Virginia 75-71 behind 25 points by Damier Pitts.
Marshall is 1-1 against the Big East Conference this season with a win at Cincinnati and a loss at then-No. 3 Syracuse.
In addition to television, the game can be heard throughout the Thundering Herd Radio Network. Gametracker can be accessed through HerdZone.com