Marshall Thundering Herd
Conference USA (21-13, 9-7)
Marshall has put together a nice season in a competitive Conference USA. They had some solid wins on their resume. Though they had double-digit losses this season, most of those losses were to teams with better records and more talent. Marshall tended to beat the teams they were supposed to, which is not always an easy task in college basketball. What crippled their shot at the NCAA Tournament was a mid-season lull where they lost six out of seven games. They rebounded with a three game win streak to keep them in the top half of the conference standings.
Big Wins: 11/25 at Cincinnati (73-69), 12/11 Iona (82-63), 12/19 Belmont (87-86)
Bad Losses: 1/1 Akron (51-67), 1/25 UAB (49-56), 2/29 at East Carolina (68-69)
Coach: Tom Herrion (2 seasons at Marshall)
Why They Can Surprise:
Marshall has a “Triple D” attack in DeAndre Kane, Damier Pitts, and Dennis Tinnon. Tinnon is the leading rebounder at nearly 10 per game while Kane and Pitts average 16.6 and 14.5 points per game, respectively. They must work cohesively for Marshall to find success. The Herd is also a very good rebounding team. They pull down 40 per game, which puts them in the top 10 in the nation in that category. Though they aren’t the best defensive team, they do stack the perimeter and stifle the opponent from the outside. They are holding teams to just over 30% shooting from the 3-point line. Coach Herrion has also been known to play 10 guys, which may come in handy in a tournament setting.
Why They Can Disappoint:
You can never be too sure which Marshall team is going to show up. Is it going to be the team that beat Cincinnati in overtime on the road or the team that struggled to find victories in January or February in the meat of the conference schedule? Marshall was putting together a banner season until January 18 when they started losing all but one game until February 11. Late in the year they seem to have turned it around, but can they sustain a level of success? The Herd has trouble shooting from long range (30.8%) and an even harder time from the foul line. They are one of the worst free-throw shooting teams in the country (60.6%). At the end of a close game, that stat may come back to haunt them.
Probable Starters:
Damier Pitts, Senior, Guard, 14.5 ppg, 4.4 apg
Shaquille Johnson, Senior, Guard, 9.1 ppg, 1.9 apg
DeAndre Kane, Sophomore, Guard, 16.6 ppg, 3.5 apg, 5.4 rpg
Robert Goff, Junior, Forward, 6.2 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.1 bpg
Dennis Tinnon, Junior, Forward, 9.9 ppg, 9.9 rpg
Key Roleplayers:
Dago Pena, Senior, Guard-Forward, 6.0 ppg, 1.5 rpg
Nigel Spikes, Junior, Center, 3.9 ppg, 4.8 rpg
Chris Martin, Freshman, Guard, 1.4 ppg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 69.5 (135, 5)
Scoring Defense: 66.5 (160, 11)
Field-Goal Percentage: 43.2 (179, 8)
Field-Goal Defense: 45.1 (263, 12)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.7 (206, 6)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 30.8 (265, 10)
Free-Throw Percentage: 60.6 (329, 12)
Rebound Margin: 7.7 (7, 1)
Assists Per Game: 13.0 (159, 6)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.1 (129, 6)
Last Five Postseason Appearances:
Marshall 2011 CIT First Round loss to Ohio
Marshall 2010 CIT First Round win over Western Carolina
Marshall 2010 CIT Second Round loss to Appalachian State
Marshall 1988 NIT First round loss to VCU
Marshall 1987 NCAA Round of 64 loss to TCU
Marshall 1985 NCAA Round of 64 loss to VCU
*all team stats through 3/4
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
