The Marshall Thundering Herd and the James Madison Dukes meet Wednesday in college basketball action from Atlantic Union Bank Center. Marshall sits at 23-6 overall this year. The Herd beat Troy in their last game. As for James Madison, they’re 20-9 on the season and coming off a win over Louisiana. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Marshall Thundering Herd
Marshall managed a 17-5 run over their first 22 games of the season. The Thundering Herd have been rolling on a 6-1 stretch since then with wins over Georgia State, Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia State, Georgia Southern and Troy.
Matched up against Troy on Saturday, the Herd were up 38-30 going into the second half. Marshall scored another 50 points from there and took the win 88-78. Andrew Taylor posted 27 points and Taevion Kinsey added 22 points with eight rebounds.
James Madison Dukes
Over on the James Madison side, they went a reasonable 14-8 over their first 22 games this year. The Dukes are also 6-1 in the last seven with wins over LA-Monroe, Old Dominion, App State, Coastal Carolina, Old Dominion again and Louisiana.
In the Louisiana matchup on Saturday, the Dukes were tied 29-29 going into halftime. James Madison managed a 45-39 run from there and took the win 74-68. Vado Morse was the leading team scorer on 24 points and four assists.
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’ll stick with Marshall here. You could make a case for JMU as well, though; this should be a fun matchup. The Herd have their offense working quite well this year. They’ve hit 66 or more points in every game so far. There’s an element of revenge in play for Marshall as well; the last time these teams met up back on New Year’s Eve, the Herd lost 72-66 at Cam Henderson Center. Marshall was outscored 40-29 in the first half in that one and never quite found their bearings. This will be a tricky matchup, but if the Herd plays well I can see them powering out a cover. Should be a fun one to watch regardless.