— By Bill Cornwell
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Its most recent time out, Marshall left the Cam Henderson Center a happy bunch after rallying for a 77-72 win over James Madison to complete a regular season sweep of the Dukes last Saturday.
The Herd looks to maintain the momentum when returns to its home hardwood Thursday to welcome UL Monroe for a matchup that can be seen on ESPN+. Originally slated for a 7 p.m. start, the contest was moved up to 5 p.m. and then again to noon in an effort to beat expected wintry weather.
Marshall (12-7, 4-3) has also adjusted the start time to noon for the final contest of its four-game home stand Saturday when the Herd host South Alabama.
As Marshall prepares for more action in Huntington, Herd coach Cornelius Jackson believes his group has a fresh dose of confidence.
“The guys are really bought in and locked in to what we want to get done,” Jackson said.
Guard Jalen Speer leads a balanced Marshall attack with a 15.1 scoring average, while guard Noah Otshudi (14.6) and forward Wyatt Fricks (14.4) follow closely behind.
Center Matt Van Komen leads Herd with 7.5 rebounds per game and he’s recorded 46 blocks to rank 11th nationally in that category.
The Warhawks (3-16, 0-7) have had next-to-no success this season and enter on a nine-game skid. A victory over Mississippi Valley State marks UL Monroe’s lone triumph over Division I competition this season.
Phil Cunningham is in his first season as Warhawks’ head coach. He formerly coached at UTEP and has an 83-127 career coaching record.
Four UL Monroe players average double-figure scoring, led by sophomore guard Krystian Lewis at 16.7 points. Other double-figure scorers are junior guard MJ Russell (15.7), senior wing Lavell Brodnex (13.9) and sophomore forward Renars Sondors, a Latvia native averaging 10.9 points.
Brodnex is the Warhawks’ top rebounder at 8.7 per game, good for second in the Sun Belt Conference.
One strength UL Monroe is its ability to keep opponents off the free-throw line. The Warhawks commit the second-fewest fouls in the Sun Belt at 13.6 per game.
This will be the third meeting for Marshall and UL Monroe, and both teams have a win in the series so far.