Marshall University men’s basketball is set to take on Western Kentucky Univeristy away from home 8 p.m. Saturday.
It will be the Herd’s last contest before the team returns home Thursday to face the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Marshall beat the Hilltoppers 94-76 Jan. 3 when they faced one another in Huntington.
Saturday’s matchup will end a three-game road stretch for the team. Last game the Herd went up against the University of Texas at San Antonio, where it scored a season-high 109 points in conference play. In the victory, the team made a season high 18 3-pointers, one short of the program record for a single game. It was the team’s second straight game over the 100-point mark.
“Everybody is shooting the ball well and sharing the ball,” sophomore guard Jon Elmore said regarding the team’s recent scoring outbursts. “We shoot a lot in practice and that is making us a good shooting team,” junior guard Stevie Browning said.
To pick up its ninth conference win and a season sweep of the Hilltoppers, Elmore said the team will need to focus in and be more disciplined defensively. Marshall has allowed over 90 points in each of its last two games, including a season-high 112 points in a loss to the University of Texas at El Paso.
The Herd have been afforded the time to rectify its problem on the defensive end with a week break between games.
Although Elmore said the defense needs to be corrected, he said if the team continues its successes offensively, it should be able to secure the victory.
“We need to keep making our shots and play in our system, and we will be alright,” Elmore said.
After the game at Western Kentucky, the Herd will return to the Cam Henderson Center for games against Charlotte and Old Dominion University.
Christian Hisman can be contacted at [email protected].