Marshall University Athletics
@HerdMBB to Host UAB in Nationally Televised Contest
2/15/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
GAME 23: MARSHALL (14-11, 7-5 C-USA) vs. UAB (15-11, 8-5 C-USA)
Thursday, Feb. 16 | 7 p.m. ET
Huntington, W.Va. | Cam Henderson Center (9,048)
CBSSN | Radio | | Marshall Game Notes | UAB Game Notes | Twitter
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The Marshall men's basketball team (14-11, 7-5 C-USA) will return home to the Henderson Center after a two-week road trip to host the UAB Blazers (15-11, 8-5 C-USA) on Thursday, Feb. 16, at 7 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcasted by CBSSN with Jason Knapp handling play-by-play and Tim Doyle as the analyst.
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 and Woody Woodrum handling the analysis. Live stats will be available through HerdZone.com.
HAVE YOU HERD
Jon Elmore's 32 points and the Herd's 14 made 3-pointers helped Marshall snap a three-game losing streak when it defeated WKU, 84-79. Austin Loop's slam dunk in the first half marked his 1,000th career point. When Justin Johnson scored his sixth point of the contest, there were six players that had scored 1,000 career points (all levels of college basketball) on the court. They were Marshall's Ryan Taylor, Stevie Browning and Austin Loop and WKU's Justin Johnson, Pancake Thomas and Que Johnson. Austin Loop is now No. 6 all-time in made 3-pointers in C-USA. Loop has made 268 career 3s. Jon Elmore had his second game of the season with at least 30 points. Only two Herd players (Elmore and Taylor) went to the free throw line. That was a season-low for Marshall.
SCOUTING THE BLAZERS
After beginning league play with a 7-2 record, UAB has since gone 1-3 in the last four games. The Blazers are the winningest program in the state of Alabama since UAB head coach Robert Ehsan arrived in Birmingham as an assistant coach before the start of the 2012-13 season. UAB was selected as the preseason favorite to win the conference in a vote by league's head coaches. UAB returns four starters from a 2015-16 squad that won Conference USA with a 16-2 record in league play. The Blazers are 4-6 on the road.
WHO TO KNOW
The Blazers are led by the two-headed front-court monster of Chris Cokley and William Lee. The duo has combined for 652 of UAB's 1,916 total points (34.0 percent) and 326 of its 944 rebounds (34.5 percent) this season
Lee is one of the premier shot-blockers in the nation, as he is 17th in the country with 62 blocks. He also leads C-USA in blocked shots as well. That is a rate of 2.4 blocked shots per game. Cokley is one of C-USA's best rebounders on the offensive glass. His 2.0 offensive boards per game is good for No. 9 in the conference.
Deion Lavender has stepped up with the absence of Nick Norton. He leads the team with 3.7 assists per game and has the seventh-best assist-to-turnover ratio with a +1.7.
SERIES HISTORY
Marshall will meet UAB for the 24th contest between the two sides. The Herd and Blazers have met every year since 2003, two years prior to when Marshall joined Conference USA. Marshall will look to break an eight-game losing streak against UAB. The last Herd victory over the Blazers came on Jan. 11, 2012.
LAST TIME
The UAB Blazers' 60-point second half helped defeat the Marshall men's basketball team, 94-78, on Jan. 14 at the Bartow Arena.
Senior forward Ryan Taylor (Indianapolis) collected his 34th career double-double and led Marshall with team-tying 18 points and team-high 10 rebounds, while senior guard Stevie Browning (Logan, W.Va.) had 18 points and three assists. UAB's William Lee collected a double-double from a game-high 22 points and 17 rebounds.
#ONEHERD
For all the latest information about Marshall men's basketball, follow @HerdMBB on Twitter and Instagram.
UP NEXT
Marshall will stay at home to host the C-USA leaders, the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders, on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcasted by ASN.
