Men’s Basketball Preview
By: Rhys Owens
HUNTINGTON, W.Va – The Marshall Men’s Basketball team is gearing up for game number two against a MAC foe that finished as the runner up in the conference last season.
The Toledo Rockets (0-2) are set to travel to Huntington tomorrow afternoon to face the Thundering Herd (1-0) at the Cam Henderson Center.
Marshall and Toledo have played every season since 2016, in what has become a bit of a rivalry game between schools four and a half hours apart.
The Rockets lead the series all time 8-6, the first ever matchup took place in 2000 as the Herd won 72-57.
The Herd got the best of the Rockets last season with an 85-73 victory at the John F. Savage Arena in Toledo, Ohio.
Marshall is supported by a strong backcourt that saw four guards put up double figures in the season opener against Buffalo. Emmanuel Manyoun scored 22 while sophomore Bryce Slay scored a career high 19 points.
The Rockets are coming off back-to-back losses against Arkansas State and #6 ranked Michigan State respectively.
Toledo cut it close with the Red Wolves, but a foul with only four seconds remaining sent the, to the line for a game winning free throw.
The Spartans put a beatdown on the Rockets 91-61, but Mynor Strong, the leading scorer for Toledo put 11 points and two steals in the loss.
The Herd ranks 165th in the KenPom rankings with an offensive rating of 103.6 while the Rockets sit at 143rd with a 106.4 offensive rating.
The two sides are relatively close in terms of team construction, but Marshall has seen limited production from its frontcourt through one game.
The Herd will have to get quality minutes from Erich Harding, Khaman Maker, and a host of other bigs if it wants to compete in this one.
The game will be broadcast on WMUL-FM88.1 as well as stream one at www.marshall.edu/wmul.
Connor Brown and I will have the call with pregame coverage beginning at 1:30 pm, tip off at 2.