Marshall University Athletics
Men's Basketball Opens Season Friday at Niagara
11/20/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Men's Basketball Opens Season Friday at Niagara
11/20/2002
Marshall University?s men?s basketball team will open the 2002-03 season Friday at Niagara University in Lewiston, N.Y. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
The contest will be the regular season opener for both schools. Niagara finished second in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference last season with a conference record of 12-6 and an 18-14 overall mark. Niagara lost the MAAC Championship game and the league?s automatic berth into the NCAA tournament to Siena by a score of 92-77.
Fifth-year head coach Joe Mihalich welcomes back a host of battle-tested performers, most notably Preseason first-team All-MAAC member James Reaves (6-8, 250, Junior, Forward) and thrid-team selection Tremmell Darden (6-4, 192, Junior, Guard ), who helped lead the squad to the MAAC Championship game last season. Reaves averaged 10.4 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, while Darden added 13 points and 4.8 rebounds per contest. Niagara received a total of 85 points to finish second behind Manhattan?s 92 votes in the MAAC preseason poll. Niagara received three first place votes.
Marshall is coming off a 15-15 campaign and features preseason All-Mid-American Conference selection Ronald Blackshear (6-5, 210, Junior, Guard). Blackshear led the Thundering Herd with 19.6 points per game last season and etched his name in the record books with his phenomenal 14 three-pointers made, including 11-consecutive, at Akron last season. The Camilla, Ga., native, averaged better than four three-pointers per game a year ago.
The game will be carried live on the Thundering Herd/ISP Radio Network.