— By Bill Cornwell
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Marshall men’s basketball coach Dan D’Antoni likes balance from his team on the floor.
The 10th-year head coach also sought for the Herd to put together balanced schedule in 2023-24.
“Scheduling is an important ingredient to success, really,” D’Antoni said. “You have to do it well and you have to be challenged, but at the same time, you have to have games where you can gain confidence. I think we have a good combination and it’s a tough, challenging schedule.”
𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑-𝟐𝟒 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐞!
Our 2023-24 schedule is here! Check it out for the all big matchups this season!
📎: https://t.co/ewqKzZnj57#BringOnTheHerd // #WeAreMarshall pic.twitter.com/ADIJQ7OO2b
— Marshall Men’s Basketball (@Herd_MBB) August 9, 2023
Following exhibition games against Pikeville on October 29 and Lees-McRae on November 1, Marshall opens its regular season at the Cam Henderson Center with a November 6 matchup against Queens University.
Four days later, Marshall heads to White Sulphur Springs to face the Radford Highlanders at The Greenbrier Resort’s Colonial Hall.
The Herd will spend November 19-21 in the Cayman Islands, participating in the Cayman Islands Classic along with Utah State, Florida International and Akron.
Marshall makes the short trip to Lexington, Kentucky on November 24 to take on the Kentucky Wildcats, a game that Marshall’s Director of Athletics Christian Spears says came about as a result of relationships.
“We need to play Quad 1 opponents and it only makes sense to play one of the best,” Spears said. “Kudos to coach [John] Calipari and his staff at UK for being willing to play Marshall, and special thanks to former Marshall Athletic Director Bob Marcum for always staying connected with Coach Cal and for our mutual Pittsburgh friends who encouraged making this connection. It is always about people and we got some great folks connected around both our programs.”
The Herd spends much of December at home with non-conference games against Miami Ohio (Dec. 2), Duquesne (Dec. 6), UNC-Greensboro (Dec. 16), Bluefield State (Dec. 18) and UNC Wilmington (Dec. 21).
There are a pair of December non-conference road games against Mid-American Conference foes — at Ohio on the 9th and Toledo on the 13th.
The 18-game Sun Belt Conference schedule begins December 30 when defending league champion Louisiana comes to the Henderson Center.
The Sun Belt schedule features a four-game home stand January 24—February 3 with games against Georgia State, Southern Miss, Old Dominion and Coastal Carolina.
There is a three-game Sun Belt road swing for the Herd February 7-17 with games at Troy, Appalachian State and Coastal Carolina.
The league schedule ends with a February 24 home game against Appalachian State and a February 28 game at Georgia Southern.
The Sun Belt Conference Tournament is March 5-11 at the Pensacola Bay Center in Pensacola, Florida.
2023-24 Marshall Men’s Basketball Schedule
Oct. 29 UPIKE (Fans First)
Nov. 1 Lees-McRae College (Fans First)
Nov. 6 Queens
Nov. 10 Radford (The Greenbrier)
Nov. 19 Utah State (Cayman Islands)
Nov. 20 Akron/FIU (Cayman Islands)
Nov. 21 TBD (Cayman Islands)
Nov. 24 at Kentucky
Dec. 2 Miami (Ohio)
Dec. 6 Duquesne
Dec. 9 at Ohio
Dec. 13 at Toledo
Dec. 16 UNCG
Dec. 18 Bluefield
Dec. 21 UNCW
Dec. 30 Louisiana**
Jan. 3 at ULM**
Jan. 6 at Texas State**
Jan. 10 Georgia Southern**
Jan. 13 South Alabama**
Jan. 18 at Old Dominion**
Jan. 20 at James Madison**
Jan. 24 Georgia State**
Jan. 27 Southern Miss**
Feb. 1 Old Dominion**
Feb. 3 Coastal Carolina**
Feb. 7 at Troy**
Feb. 15 at App State**
Feb. 17 at Coastal Carolina**
Feb. 21 James Madison**
Feb. 24 App State**
Feb. 28 at Georgia Southern**
Mar. 1 at Georgia State**
Mar. 5-11 Sun Belt Conference Men’s Basketball Championship
** = Sun Belt Conference game