— By Bill Cornwell
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — The 2021-2022 season wasn’t much fun for Marshall’s men’s basketball team or its fans.
The Thundering Herd struggled to a 12-21 record, including 4-14 in Conference USA in what marked Marshall’s final season in the league. The season included a 10-game losing streak from December into January.
As Marshall embarks on its first season as a member of the Sun Belt Conference, the Thundering Herd do so seeking a turnaround following last year’s disappointment.
Practice began this week in Huntington and ninth-year MU head coach Dan D’Antoni is optimistic in regards to his team’s offseason work.
“They were all in the gym, trying to get better,” D’Antoni said. “I was pleased at how they improved their individual skills.”
D’Antoni has a 140-120 record as coach at his alma mater.
Among returning players, senior guard Taevion Kinsey led Marshall in scoring last season with a 19.1 average. Kinsey was second with 131 assists, and the swingman is back for his fifth season at Marshall.
“He’s in here every morning at 6 trying to get better,” D’Antoni said. “He’s refining his game, working on his moves that will get him to the basket.”
Two other notable returning veterans are junior guard Andrew Taylor, who was second with a 14.2 scoring average and tops with 145 assists, and sophomore forward Obinna Anochili-Killen, the only other player to average double-figure scoring at 11.6 points, while also leading the Herd with a 6.6 rebounding average and 87 blocks.
Other returnees that could factor into the rotation include guards David Early and Kyle Braun, forwards Chase McKey, Aymerric Toussaint and Marko Sarenac and 7-foot center Goran Miladinovic.
There are four newcomers on the Herd’s roster, including stretch forward Wyatt Fricks, who was redshirted last season after undergoing knee surgery. The 6-9 Fricks is 3-point shooting threat that could help stretch defenses.
The Marshall newcomer receiving the most attention is VMI transfer Kamdyn Curfman, a junior who averaged 15.7 points last year for the Keydets, while shooting nearly 40 percent from behind the 3-point line. He also shot 80 percent from the free-throw line.
Other new faces for the Herd are swingman Jacob Conner and 7-footer Micah Handlogten.
Kinsey is excited with the new faces in the program.
“This is a great recruiting class,” Kinsey said. “They are basketball-and college-ready and they’re adapting very well.”
D’Antoni says he’s been studying the teams that Marshall will face in the Sun Belt this season and he says there is little difference between Marshall’s current and old conference affiliation.
“There’s length and athleticism in both conferences,” D’Antoni said. “There are a lot of guys who are similar to us, with good shooters and lengthy, athletic kids.”
Marshall got a taste of the Sun Belt last season when it beat Louisiana 93-79 at the Henderson Center.
Marshall opens play with two exhibition games at the Henderson Center, facing Charleston on October 28 and Pikeville on November 2.
The regular season starts November 7 at Queens University in Charlotte. The home opener is November 14 against Tennessee Tech, while the league opener is at December 29 when MU welcomes Appalachian State.