Marshall Thundering Herd at Old Dominion Monarchs – NCAAM February 5

Marshall (9-4, 3-3) at Old Dominion (8-4, 4-2)

• Time: 4PM PST | 6PM CST | 7PM EST
• Location: Chartway Arena, Norfolk, VA
• TV: ESPN+

Tip-Off

The Thundering Herd and Monarchs have split the 22 meetings as they are tied at 11-11. Marshall won a pair of close games last season, but ODU holds a 7-2 advantage in Norfolk.

Marshall won it’s last two games at FIU two weeks ago as last week’s visit from Florida Atlantic was postponed due to COVID-19 protocols. The Herd has had five games postponed and one cancelled this season.

ODU has won four of it’s last five; however, the Monarchs have not played since Jan. 16 when they beat Rice on the last game of a back-to-back to split the two games with the Owls. ODU’s last two weekends have been cancelled vs. North Texas and Western Kentucky

Vs. The Spread

Marshall:

• The Thundering Herd is 7-3 ATS in the last 10 games vs. ODU.
• MU is 6-2 ATS in it’s last 8 road games
• The Herd is 10-5 ATS in it’s last 15 CUSA contests

Old Dominion:

• ODU is 4-12-1 ATS in it’s last 17 games
• The total has gone UNDER in 4 of ODU’s last 5 games
• The Monarchs are 8-0 SU in their last 8 home games

Last Time Out

The Thundering Herd defeated FIU, 89-72 back on Jan. 23. The game was tied at 62-62 with 9:08 remaining and Marshall went on a 15-4 run to break the game open. Taevion Kinsey led Marshall with 22 points while Andrew Taylor popped in 22.

ODU defeated Rice on Jan. 16, 61-58, as Malik Curry led the way with 20 points. The Monarchs defended at a high clip as they benefitted from holding the Owls to 37.5 percent from the field while picking up 13 steals, seven by Curry.

Thundering Herd Stat Pack

• Andrew Taylor went 16-of-26 from the floor and averaged 18 points per game in the Herd’s two wins over FIU two weeks ago.
• David Early had the breakout game of his freshman campaign in the Jan. 23 win over FIU as he went 5-of-7 from the field, scoring 14 points in 21 minutes.
• Leading scorer Taveion Kinsey posted 31 rebounds in his last three games.

Thundering Herd Grease Board

When these two teams matchup, it’s about who can control the pace as Marshall’s average possession length is 14.6 seconds (8th/NCAA) and ODU’s is 17.6 seconds (232nd/NCAA). Taveion Kinsey (19.8 ppg, 6.8 rpg) leads the Thundering Herd in scoring as Marshall averages 79.3 points per game. The Monarchs always play solid defense which has been a hallmark of Jeff Jones’s programs at Virginia, American and ODU. This season, Old Dominion’s effective defensive field goal percentage is the lowest of any of Jones’s teams (248th/NCAA), per kenpoom.com. Much of this is due to the fact that ODU’s opponents are shooting 35.1 percent from three which plays into the hands of Dan D’Antoni’s team as Marshall doesn’t shoot as high of a percentage in the past (32.7% -3), but Kinsey shoots 53.5 percent with most of his points coming inside or in mid-range. His offensive aggression is a tough assignment for the Monarchs.

Monarchs Stat Pack

• Xavier Green has started all 12 games and needs only 20 more points to break 1,000.
• ODU has held it’s last three opponents to only 38.4 percent from the field and they are 30-of-90 from the three-point line.
• Only two Monarchs have fouled out of the 12 games so far this season.

Monarchs Grease Board

Lots of ODU’s defensive problems come with the fact that the Monarchs need a consistent scorer beside of Malik Curry (16.5 ppg, 4.1 apg) on the perimeter, so he can facilitate even more with his ability to score. Kalu Ezikpe (10.3 ppg, 6.7 rpg) is a solid post presence with his 48.3 shooting percentage, but he needs more than his average of seven shots per game. That’s where another consistent scorer on the perimeter would be very beneficial. It’s also why ODU has only a 46 percent assists-to field goals made percentage, per kenpom.com.

Winner: Marshall (-5.5) 73, Old Dominion 66
Over-Under: Take UNDER 142