Old Dominion (15-4, 5-2 C-USA) at Marshall (11-7, 6-3 C-USA)
Game Info – Thursday, Feb. 3 at 6 p.m.
Location – Cam Henderson Center (Huntington, W.Va.)
Watch – ESPN+
Listen – Money Talk 1310 AM, 100.9 FM and 97.3 HD2
Live Stats – Click Here
Game Notes – ODU
Old Dominion at WKU (14-6, 7-2 C-USA)
Game Info – Saturday, Feb. 5 at 3 p.m. ET
Location – E.A. Diddle Arena (Bowling Green, Ky.)
Watch – ESPN+
Listen – ESPN Radio 94.1 FM
Live Stats – Click Here
NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion women's basketball team takes to the road for games against Marshall (Feb. 3, 6 p.m.) and WKU (Feb. 5, 3 p.m. ET). These two games will bring the Monarchs to the halfway point of their Conference USA schedule and will bring the race for the C-USA East Division title into clearer focus as both the Monarchs and Lady Toppers are one game behind leaders Charlotte, and the Thundering Herd are just two games back.
The Starting Five
On Jan. 20, head coach DeLisha Milton-Jones was announced as a finalist for the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2022. Milton-Jones boasts an accolade-filled career in the game. She received the Wade Trophy in 1997 as the best player in college basketball and won two Olympic gold medals and two WNBA titles.
The Monarchs handed preseason conference favorite Charlotte its first loss in C-USA play with a 54-45 result on Saturday, avenging Wednesday's loss to the 49ers in the process. ODU's defense held Charlotte to 32.7-percent shooting from the field and just one 3-pointer at a .083 clip, both season lows. The Monarchs won the rebounding battle 42-29 and had 17 offensive rebounds.
ODU is averaging 42.2 rebounds per game in its last four games, including 19.6 offensive boards per contest. The Monarchs own a plus-9.4 rebounding margin in that span and are averaging 13.2 second chance points.
The Monarchs are one of the tightest defensive units in the country this year. ODU entered Wednesday ranked seventh nationally and first in C-USA in scoring defense (51.6). The Monarchs are 32nd in field goal percentage defense (.362) and 12th in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.250), both good for 2nd in C-USA. ODU is turning teams over a league-leading 21.95 times per game (14th in DI) while averaging the 19th-most steals per game (11.4) in the country.
On Feb. 19, 2021 the Monarchs sat at 6-9 overall and 3-8 in Conference USA before ending the season with seven wins in their last nine games. The Monarchs are a combined 22-6 (.786) since that Feb. 19 loss to UAB. Those are the most wins by a C-USA team over that span, and no team in C-USA can match ODU's win percentage since Feb. 19.
Scouting Marshall
The Thundering Herd enter Thursday with an 11-7 overall record and are 6-3 in Conference USA after winning six of their first seven conference games. Marshall is on a two-game losing streak with setbacks to Middle Tennessee (80-41) and UAB (77-65).
The Herd boast the conference's leading scorer in Savannah Wheeler (20.3 points per game, 15th nationally). Additionally, Wheeler is top-five in C-USA in 3-pointers made (2.11), 3-point shooting percentage (.373), made free throws (96) and accuracy at the foul line (.842).
Aaliyah Dunham averages 7.4 points, 4.1 assists and 2.1 steals per game and leads the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.47).
Lorelei Roper is Marshall's leading rebounder, averaging 6.9 per game, and also blocks 1.2 shots per contest.
Marshall is a disciplined squad and leads C-USA in fewest turnovers (13.1) and assist-to-turnover ratio (0.91).
Scouting WKU
The Lady Toppers sit at 14-6 and 7-2 in the conference but have lost their last two games to UAB (86-70) and Middle Tennessee (71-64). WKU hosts Charlotte on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. ET before welcoming the Monarchs on Saturday.
WKU leads the conference in scoring at 72.4 points per game and are also tops in assists (15.0). As a team, the Lady Toppers shoot 43.7 percent, good for second in C-USA. WKU bombs away from deep, making eight triples per game (second in the conference) at a 33.8-percent clip (first in the conference).
Meral Abdelgawad is second in C-USA in scoring (20.1 points per game) and is 10th in rebounding (7.2). She shoots .548 from the field and averages 2.65 steals per game, both second-best in the conference.
Alexis Mead averages 3.5 assists per game, and Macey Blevins hits 1.75 3-pointers per contest.
The Series
Old Dominion and Marshall are playing for the 16th time in a series that goes back to the 1973-74 season. The Monarchs are 10-5 overall and 4-1 in their last five against the Thundering Herd and split a pair of games last February.
ODU is 12-17 all-time against WKU but owns a five-game winning streak over the Lady Toppers. The Monarchs played WKU three times in a row last season, twice to conclude the regular season and then again in the Preliminary Round of the C-USA Tournament.
What's Next
The Monarchs host FIU on Monday, Feb. 7 at 6:30 p.m. After that, ODU welcomes Middle Tennessee for a 6:30 p.m. tilt on Thursday, Feb. 10 before heading to UAB for a 1 p.m. game on Sunday, Feb. 13.
Women’s Basketball Travels to Marshall, WKU
