Marshall University Athletics
@HerdMBB to Face Long-time Rival Morehead State
11/15/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
GAME 2: Morehead State (2-0, 0-0 OVC) vs. Marshall (1-0, 0-0 C-USA)
Wednesday, Nov. 16 | 7 p.m. ET
Huntington, W.Va. | Cam Henderson Center (9,048)
Video | Radio | | Twitter
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The Marshall men's basketball team will play its second game of the season when it hosts long-time rival, Morehead State, for the 98th contest in series history on Wednesday, Nov. 16, at 7 p.m.
In addition to coverage from @HerdMBB on Twitter and Instagram, the game can be found on the Thundering Herd IMG Sports Network with Steve Cotton on the call. Live stats will be available through
HAVE YOU HERD
Marshall began its 104th season with an 81-69 win over the N.C. Central Eagles. Junior forward Terrence Thompson collected his career first double-double when he scored a career-high 20 points and tied a career-high with 10 rebounds. He was the first player to collect a double-double since James Kelly and Ryan Taylor each had one vs. UTEP (3/10/16). The Herd has now won nine of its last 10 home openers with last season's loss being the lone exception.
THE ELLIS JOHNSON TROPHY
The teams will compete for the Ellis Johnson Trophy, which is named after the late head coach who spent time at the helm of both programs. Johnson coached Morehead State from 1936-53 and took some years off before coming out of retirement to coach the Marshall basketball team from 1963-69. He had a 176-158 record with the Eagles in basketball and was 54-44-10 with the football team. Johnson is also famous for becoming the first All-America player that Adolph Rupp coached while at Kentucky. He was 68-60 with the Herd. The series dates back to the 1908-09 season, but the Eagles have won the past three games in the series.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES
Morehead State is coming off of a 2015-16 in which it participated in its first ever national postseason championship game when it played for the CBI championship. The Eagles have made 10 postseason appearances and have advanced beyond the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament in five of the past eight seasons. Morehead State recorded its seventh 20-win season in program history in 2015-16. Head coach Sean Woods has led MSU to 20-plus wins twice in four years. With 23 wins on the year, the Eagles recorded the most victories since they finished the 2010-11 season at 25-10. Last season, the Eagles recorded 11 wins in OVC play for the first time since they won 13 in 2010-11. That season they played 18 OVC games and finished 13-5.
WHO TO KNOW
Head coach Sean Woods guided Morehead State to a 23-14 record and a trip to the CBI Finals in 2015-16. He is 75-63 at Morehead State and his 75 wins in his first four years is the most for any coach in program history during that span. Senior Xavier Moon, a preseason All-OVC selection, who averaged 10.2 points and ranked seventh in the OVC with a 41 percent shooting percentage from three-point line last season. Junior Miguel Dicent and sophomore Malik Maitland also return after making a combined 20 starts.
LAST TIME THE TWO TEAMS FACED EACH OTHER
Redshirt freshman guard C.J. Burks (Martinsburg, W.Va.) and junior guard Austin Loop (South Webster, Ohio) led Marshall men's basketball with 12 points apiece in an 85-61 road loss at Morehead State. Burks recorded the first points of his Herd career on 5-of-10 shooting from the field, and Loop went 4-of-9 from long range. Each had one rebound and one assist. Stevie Browning (Logan, W.Va.) and James Kelly (Ann Arbor, Mich.) had their second consecutive games in double-figures (in addition to Loop) with 10 points apiece. Kelly led the team on the boards with eight rebounds.
TRENDING UP
The Herd is 21-11 overall at home under head coach Dan D'Antoni. The Herd went 10-4 in the 2015-16 season while at home. Marshall has had four players reach double-figures in five consecutive games, which dates back to the 2015-16 season. The last time the Herd did not have at least four players score in double-figures was at Middle Tennessee on Feb. 27, 2016. The Herd scored 81 points vs. N.C. Central. Marshall scored 80-plus points in 22 games in the 2015-16 season. Senior guard Stevie Browning eclipsed double-figures in scoring for the 24th time in his Herd career with 16 points vs. the Eagles. When Morehead State comes into town Marshall will have played two straight schools that have an eagle for a mascot (N.C. Central), while Morehead State will play two straight schools that have a bison for a mascot (Lipscomb) when it plays Marshall.
#STAMPEDE16
Stay up-to-date on all things Herd men's basketball via social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat (username: HerdZone).
UP NEXT
Marshall will host its fifth straight home game when it hosts the Western Carolina Catamounts on Saturday, Nov. 19, at 5 p.m. For all the latest information about Marshall men's basketball, follow @HerdMBB on Twitter.
---HerdZone.com---
