Herd Women Host Old Dominion Saturday Afternoon

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The Marshall women's basketball team (11-14 overall, 6-8 Conference USA) will host Old Dominion (22-4, 12-2) on Saturday. Tip time at the Cam Henderson Center is 3 p.m. ET. All fans who bring a pair of new or gently used pair of shoes or socks will gain admission with a $2 ticket.

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Game Notes
Series History: 14th all-time meeting – ODU leads 9-4
Last Meeting: January 18, 2020 in Norfolk, Va. – ODU won 57-46

Scouting the Monarchs
Old Dominion comes into Saturday's game two days after seeing its 11-game winning streak snapped by Charlotte 63-59 in the Queen City. Taylor Edwards, who had a career-high 29 points against the 49ers, leads the team with 12.1 points per game. She is joined by three teammates in double figures: Ajah Wayne (11.3), Victoria Morris (11.1) and Amari Young (10.6). Young is tops in rebounds (8.3) and steals (2.3-second in C-USA) while Edwards leads in assists (3.4). Morris is the top long-distance shooter, bagging 68 triples (third-highest total in C-USA) and shooting 38.4 percent from deep.

ODU was picked fifth in the league's preseason poll but has been excellent this season, sporting a 12-2 league mark to tie Rice for the top spot in the C-USA standings. Marshall was picked 11th, but currently sits in a three-way tie for eighth at 6-8.

As you might expect, the Monarchs lead the league in several statistical categories. They are tops in scoring defense (54.6), scoring margin (+12.1), field goal percentage defense (34.9), 3-point percentage defense (23.6), rebounding offense (41.7) and defensive rebounding percentage (71.8). They are 12th in the conference in free throw percentage (61.4).

In the first meeting of the season between the two schools, Wayne and Young both registered double-doubles as the Monarchs held off a valiant Marshall comeback 57-46 on January 18 in Norfolk.

Wayne had 19 points and 11 rebounds, while Young posted 12 points and 14 boards to lead the Monarchs. The latter also four steals. Young and Adams had three assists apiece as well.

The Thundering Herd's Savannah Wheeler tied a (then)-season-high with 19 points, making all nine of her free throws. Taylor Pearson also chipped in 10 points and eight rebounds, while Khadaijia Brooks notched eight points, five rebounds and four steals. Both Pearson and Brooks fouled out as Marshall battled difficulty throughout.

Wheeler and Kristen Mayo led the team with three assists apiece. 17 points. Princess Clemons had a good all-around game with a season-high 10 points, four rebounds, four assists and four steals.

Last Time Out: Feb. 20 at WKU (L, 79-65)
WKU's women's basketball team used a strong second quarter to power past Marshall 79-65 Thursday evening at E.A. Diddle Arena.

The win was WKU's ninth in a row (13th straight at home) and vaulted the home team to 19-6 overall and 11-3 in Conference USA, while Marshall dropped to 11-14 and 6-8 in the league.

The Lady Tops nearly put every starter in double figures, led by Raneem Elgedawy's double-double effort of 17 points and 12 rebounds. Whitney Creech was the team's leading scorer with 19, followed by 11 from Meral Abdelgawad and 10 by Dee Givens. Creech led the way with four assists.

Taylor Pearson paced Marshall with a career-high 24 points on 10-for-15 shooting. She was joined in double digits by Savannah Wheeler with 19. Princess Clemons was the team's top rebounder with six to go with her three assists and three steals.

Marshall jumped out to a six-point lead (17-11) on a Wheeler triple with 4:13 left in the opening quarter. However, the Lady Tops closed the period on a 13-3 run to emerge with a 24-20 lead after 10 minutes of action.

The Herd made just three of its 10 shots in the second quarter and was plagued by 12 first-half turnovers as the lead ballooned to 17 (45-28) at the half.

A solid third quarter for the visitors saw Marshall trim the deficit to nine (57-48) on a Kia Sivils free throw in the final minute of the period, but WKU pushed its advantage back to 19 (75-56) on a De'Myla Brown jumper with 3:58 left.

"The first quarter was certainly better than it has been here but the first-half turnovers were just too much to overcome," said Marshall head coach Tony Kemper. "Taylor Pearson played well and that's what we need from her. One thing we have to do better on Saturday is rebound the ball. We just simply aren't doing that well enough right now."

The Lady Tops won the rebounding battle 38-22, including 18-7 on the offensive end.

Stolen!
Marshall has had more steals than the opposition in six of its last seven games. Individually, Princess Clemons and Khadaijia Brooks have averaged 1.6 per game in league play, which are both top-15 marks in C-USA.

Wheeler Named C-USA Freshman of the Week
Freshman Savannah Wheeler was named Conference USA Freshman of the Week, the league office announced Feb. 17.

Wheeler provided a spark for the Thundering Herd as it blew past UTSA and UTEP at home. She averaged 14.5 points, three rebounds and three assists, and shined at the perimeter with a 6-for-11 clip. She racked up 13 points with three treys and four rebounds against the Roadrunners, followed by a 16-point effort when Marshall hosted UTEP. Wheeler went 5-of-10 from the floor versus the Miners, knocking down three more long-range shots with five assists and two rebounds. In both contests, Wheeler combined for 5-of-6 attempts from the charity stripe as she resides in 42nd nationally in free throw percentage (83.8) and 52nd in free throws made (98).

66+
The Thundering Herd is 9-1 this season when reaching the 66-point mark. The lone loss was an 82-69 setback to Bowling Green on December 7.

Making Them Count
Marshall has had a higher free throw percentage than the opposition in its last 13 games. That's nothing new for the Thundering Herd. Last season, Marshall had a 13-game streak of free throw percentage equal to, or better, than its opponents (January 19 to March 13). In these last 13 games, the Herd has connected on 76.0 percent (184-for-242) compared to 60.3 percent (152-for-252) for its opponents. Against UTSA, the Herd made all 17 of its attempts, a number that is tied for fourth nationally among those schools who have posted a perfect single-game percentage. The last time the Thundering Herd made more in a game without a miss was February 6, 2016 when it went 18-for-18 in an 80-76 win ... at UTSA. For the season, Marshall ranks second in C-USA games at 75.4 percent (193-for-256).

Pearson's Resurgence
Marshall's Taylor Pearson has averaged 15.1 points over her last 11 games. That figure is up from her 4.7 per game clip over the previous six games. The Columbus, Ohio native has also made 16 of her last 17 at the charity stripe. On the season, she is second in the league in 3-point percentage (40.7 percent).

Season/Career-Highs
Taylor Pearson set new career-highs in points (24) and field goals made (10) in the 79-65 loss at WKU on Thursday.

Wheeler Attacks
Since entering the starting lineup at North Texas on January 4, Savannah Wheeler has gotten to the free throw line 87 times in those last 13 games (6.7 per game), making 73 for 83.9 percent. In her previous 12 games, she got to the charity stripe just 38 times (3.2 per contest).

Leading and Leading Late
Marshall is 11-1 this season when leading at the half and 10-1 when leading with five minutes left in regulation. Since the beginning of last season, the Thundering Herd is 24-6 when leading at the break and 24-3 when leading at the five-minute mark.

Hitting the Glass, Controlling the Paint
The Thundering Herd is 14-5 since the start of last season when it outrebounds the opposition and 17-5 when it scores more in the paint.

Block Party
Senior Ashley Saintigene has returned to the Herd lineup with a vengeance this season on the defensive side. The senior has swatted 45 shots in 16 games to start the year. She has had two or more in 14 contests. Her season-high thus far is five in a win over Coppin State (11/19).

The Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., native is fourth all-time in program history in blocked shots with 126 and her 45 this season puts her sixth in Marshall's single-season records. She became the seventh player to hit the century mark with her third and final block at Evansville. Saintigene had an excellent start to her career with 42 blocks (1.45 per game) in her freshman season, seventh-most in Marshall history. She tallied just 22 her sophomore season as she only played in 12 games (1.83 per game) after suffering an injury. Saintigene came back to the Herd briefly in 2018-19 playing in just nine games before re-aggravating the injury, but still came away with 17 more swats (1.89 per game). The Herd record for most in a season is 117 by Sharon Deal in 1988-89. Deal averaged 4.2 per game which is still a Southern Conference record. Deal is also Marshall's all-time leader with 188 in a career that spanned just two seasons (1987-89).

Marshall's Single-Season Blocks Leaders
1. 117 - Sharon Deal - 1988-89
2. 71 - Sharon Deal - 1987-88
3. 54 - Chelsey Romero - 2013-14
    54 - Talequia Hamilton - 2016-17
5. 49 - Tynikki Crook - 2008-09
6. 45 - Ashley Saintigene - 2019-20
7. 43 - Talequia Hamilton - 2017-18
8. 42 - Ashley Saintigene - 2016-17
9. 40 - Modupe Ishola - 2006-07
    40 - Tynikki Crook - 2009-10
    40 - Leandra King - 2012-13
    40 - Chukwuka Ezeigbo - 2013-14

Marshall's Career Blocks Leaders
1. 188 - Sharon Deal (1987-89)
2. 153 - Tynikki Crook (2007-11)
3. 135 - Talequia Hamilton (2015-18)
4. 126 - Ashley Saintigene (2016-Present)
5. 119 - Modupe Ishola (2003-07)
    119 - Chelsey Romero (2013-16)
7. 115 - Chukwuka Ezeigbo (2011-15)
8. 91 - Chris McClurkin (1984-88)
9. 87 - Lisa Pruner (1980-84)
10. 74 - Khadaijia Brooks (2015-Present)

Marshall's Career Field Goal Percentage Leaders (min. 200 attempts)
1. Modupe Ishola (57.4, 448-781), 2003-07
2. Chukwuka Eziegbo (55.4, 357-644), 2011-15
3. Kim Shepherd (52.2, 190-364), 1983-1985
4. Talequia Hamilton (50.9, 416-818), 2015-18
5. Chris McClurkin (50.8, 291-573), 1984-88
6. Tammy Simms (50.7, 292-576), 1986-88
7. Karen Pelphrey (50.5, 1175-2328), 1982-86
8. Ashley Saintigene (50.2, 160-319), 2016-Present
9. Kristina Behnfeldt (49.5, 664-1341), 1995-99
10. Jenette Reed (49.2, 126-256), 1989-93

Marshall's Career Free Throw Percentage Leaders (min. 100 attempts)
1. Taylor Porter (83.7, 144-172), 2015-19
2. Savannah Wheeler (83.2, 104-125), 2019-Present
3. Kristina Behnfeldt (82.0, 728-888), 1995-99
4. Shayna Gore (81.2, 336-411), 2015-19
5. Jenny Leavitt (80.7, 205-254), 1985-89
6. Lee Ann Parsley (79.5, 263-331), 1986-90
7. Reshundra Smiley (79.4, 85-107), 2004-06
8. Kristen Mayo (78.8, 115-146), 2017-Present
9. Karen Pelphrey (78.4, 396-505), 1982-86
10. Kim Lewis (77.8, 161-207), 1984-88

Ranked in the NCAA
Marshall is ranked in the top 100 in the NCAA in several categories.

40th in 3-point field goals per game - 7.8
51st in field goal percentage defense - 36.8%
51st in blocks per game - 4.4
54th in total blocks - 109
51st in 3-point field goals made - 194
62nd in fewest turnovers - 355
71st in fewest turnovers per game - 14.2
Savannah Wheeler is 45th in free throws made (104)
Savannah Wheeler is 46th in free throw percentage (83.2)
Ashley Saintigene is 52nd in total blocks (45)
Savannah Wheeler is 91st in free throw attempts (125)

Notable Active Herd Streaks: (last game without stat in parentheses)
Taylor Pearson 58-straight games with a rebound (2/17/18 at WKU)
Taylor Pearson 47-straight games with a point (12/4/18 at Wisconsin)
Kristen Mayo 46-straight games with a point (12/18/18 at Clemson)
Khadaijia Brooks 40-straight starts (1/17/19 at FAU)

Hot Shooting
Marshall's 55.1 percent field goal shooting (27-for-49) in the 76-66 win over UTEP was the highest figure for the program since registering a 56.8 percent clip in an 82-78 loss to Southern Miss on February 2, 2017.

Stingy
Marshall allowed just one steal to Louisiana Tech in Saturday's loss in Ruston. That's the fewest for a Marshall opponent since Charlotte also had just one in a 71-66 victory over the Thundering Herd in the first round of the 2017 Conference USA Tournament.

20+
When Wheeler and Mayo both got to the 20-point plateau against Florida Atlantic, it marked the first time since last season's regular-season-finale romp over FIU (3/7/19) that Marshall had two players secure that achievement. In that game, Taylor Porter connected on a school-record 10 3-pointers for 30 points and Shayna Gore added 29.

Getting Offensive
Marshall's 18 offensive rebounds against FIU were the most for the program in a league game since grabbing 19 in a 72-54 loss to Louisiana Tech on February 4, 2017.

Defensive Struggle
The 98 combined points between Charlotte and Marshall on January 16 were the fewest in a Thundering Herd game since February 7, 2015 when North Texas edged Marshall 45-42 in Denton.

Up Next
Marshall is off until Saturday when it welcomes North Texas for a 1 p.m. tip.

For all of the latest information on the Marshall women's basketball team, follow the Herd on Twitter @HerdWBB, Facebook at Marshall University Basketball and on www.herdzone.com.

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Players Mentioned

Khadaijia Brooks

Princess Clemons

Shayna Gore

Kristen Mayo

Taylor Pearson

Taylor Porter

Ashley Saintigene

Kia Sivils

Savannah Wheeler

Marshall University Athletics