Monarchs Continue Road Swing with Games at Marshall, James Madison

Old Dominion (12-3, 4-1 Sun Belt) at Marshall (11-5, 5-0 Sun Belt) | at James Madison (12-5, 4-1 Sun Belt)
Game Info – Thursday, Jan. 18 at 6 p.m. | Saturday, Jan. 20 at 2 p.m.
Location – Cam Henderson Center (Huntington, W.Va.) | Atlantic Union Bank Center (Harrisonburg, Va.)
Watch – ESPN+ (Game 1 | Game 2)
Listen – Game 1 | Game 2
Live Stats – Game 1 | Game 2
Social Media – Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion women's basketball continues its road stretch with Sun Belt Conference games at Marshall on Thursday night and at James Madison on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff against the Thundering Herd is set for 6:30 p.m., and Saturday's meeting with the Dukes is scheduled for 2 p.m.

Both games will be streamed on ESPN+. Matthew Hatfield and Shonda Deberry will call the action on Fox Sports Radio 1310 AM, 100.9 FM on Thursday and on Priority Auto Sports Radio 94.1 FM on Saturday. Fans can also follow along with live stats.

The Series
ODU and Marshall are meeting for the 21st time this week, a series that has ODU leading 14-6. The Monarchs claimed both games against the Herd last season, defeating Marshall 63-56 on Jan. 14 at Chartway Arena and 66-63 on Feb. 22 in Huntington. In the first game, Amari Young posted a 17-point, 13-rebound double-double, Kaye Clark followed with 16 points, and Jatyjia Jones had 12 points. In the second game, Jordan McLaughlin set a new season high with 22 points to pace the Monarchs. She added six rebounds with three assists and two steals to her final line.

ODU is up 52-28 in the all-time series versus JMU, though the Dukes have won the past eight meetings. Last year during the regular season, ODU came up short in Harrisonburg, 68-54 on Dec. 31, then fell 73-68 in overtime on Feb. 18 in Norfolk. The two teams then met again on March 5 in the semifinals of the Sun Belt Championship. ODU erased a 16-point deficit to tie the game at 47-47 early in the fourth quarter. After falling behind by eight points (64-56) with just over three minutes left, a couple of three pointers from McLaughlin and Brenda Fontana along with two free throws by Makayla Dickens closed that gap to 66-64 with 26 seconds on the clock. However, JMU went 4-for-4 at the free-throw line to hold off the Monarchs.

About ODU
The Monarchs (12-3, 4-1 Sun Belt) secured a pair of road wins at Coastal Carolina and Georgia Southern last week. Clark and En'Dya Buford scored 14 points apiece to lead the team past the Chanticleers on Wednesday, 71-57. ODU's defensive pressure then proved too much for the Eagles on Saturday as the Monarchs grabbed a 70-50 victory. This time it was McLaughlin and Fontana leading the charge with 12 points each.

After slipping down to 21st in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll, the pair of wins moved ODU back up a couple spots to 19th. The team is also listed 112th in the latest NET rankings. As a team, the Monarchs are averaging 61.3 points per game while shooting .362 from the field, .297 from distance, and .658 at the free-throw line. ODU has outscored its opponents by 7.2 ppg and is also winning the battle on the glass with a +2.8 rebounding margin. Through games played on Jan. 16, the Monarch are ranked 15th in the country in scoring defense (54.1 ppg), 20th in steals per game (11.4), 21st in field goal percentage defense (.354) and 22nd in three-point field goal percentage defense (.256).

Buford and McLaughlin are ODU's top two scorers, averaging 10.5 points and 10.1 points respectively. The Monarchs have several options to choose from when it comes to perimeter shooting: Buford and Fontana (7.1 ppg) have both made 18 threes, McLaughlin has knocked down 17, and Mimi McCollister (5.3 ppg) is next with 15. Simone Cunningham (4.4 ppg) owns the team highs in rebounding with 92 total boards and 6.1 rpg. On defense, Clark ranks seventh nationally with 3.33 steals per game and is also 13th with 50 total steals. Lanetta Williams (3.3 ppg) has blocked 13 shots and Cunningham is close behind her with 11 blocks.

About Marshall
The Herd (11-5, 5-0) sits atop the league standings after winning 90-78 at Georgia State last Thursday and 72-60 at Coastal Carolina on Saturday. The team's 5-0 start to conference play marks the fourth time in program history that Marshall has accomplished the feat.

That stretch of success led to Aislynn Hayes being named the Sun Belt Player of the Week on Tuesday. The junior guard from Murfreesboro, Tennessee put together a pair of 20+ point performances last week, tallying 20 points against the Panthers and 23 points versus the Chanticleers.

Just like last week at Georgia Southern, Thursday's game will pit ODU's defense against one of the Sun Belt's top offensive teams. The Herd ranks second in the country in three-point attempts per game (30.2), 10th in threes made per game (9.4), 12th in scoring offense (83.9 ppg) and free throw attempts per game (22.75), and 15th in free throws made per game (16.00). Marshall is also ranked fourth nationally in steals per game (13.4), fifth in turnovers forced per game (23.94), and sixth in turnover margin (7.81). The team is just ahead of ODU in the NET rankings at No. 111 and is shooting .420 from the field, .313 from beyond the arc, and .703 at the line.

The Herd loves to shoot the long ball and has six players that have made double-digit threes. Abby Beeman (16.3 ppg) is the top markswoman with 39 makes from long range. Hayes (12.9 ppg) is next with 25 three-pointers, Breanna Campbell (14.3 ppg) and Sydni Scott (4.9 ppg) follow with 16 each, Meredith Maier (4.1 ppg) has hit 15, and leading scorer Roshala Scott (21.0 ppg) has made 10. Beeman is the top rebounder at 6.4 rpg and owns the team high in assists with 93. She and Campbell have combined for 17 steals while Mahogany Matthews (9.1 ppg) ranks 24th in the country with 2.19 blocks per game and 26th with 35 total blocks.
 
Marshall was picked to finish ninth in the Sun Belt Preseason Coaches' Poll and Scott earned Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team honors. Head coach Kim Caldwell is in her first season with the program following seven seasons at NCAA Division II member Glenville State.

About James Madison
The Dukes (12-5, 4-1) earned an 81-76 win at Southern Miss last Thursday, but are coming off an 87-74 setback at Troy last Saturday. The team opens its week at home against Georgia Southern on Thursday, with opening tip against the Eagles set for 5 p.m.

JMU was eighth in last week's Mid-Major Top 25 Poll, but has since dropped to 15th. The Dukes are also a couple spots ahead of both Marshall and ODU in the NET rankings, coming in at No. 107. The team averages 72.2 ppg while allowing 65.5 points for a +6.7 scoring margin. JMU is shooting a combined .421 from the floor, .301 from deep, and .673 at the charity stripe. The Dukes rank fifth in the country in rebounds per game (47.00) and defensive rebounds per game (32.6) and are 10th in rebounding margin (12.6).

Three Dukes enter the week averaging double-digit scoring: Peyton McDaniel leads the way with 12.8 ppg, Kseniia Kozlova is second with 12.3 ppg, and Jamia Hazell is third at 12.1 ppg. McDaniel is the deep threat with 33 three-pointers made so far this season, and she and Kozlova lead the rebounding effort with 123 (7.2 rpg) and 101 boards (6.7 rpg), respectively. Hazell is tops in steals with 16 while Ashanti Barnes (6.9 ppg) and Annalicia Goodman (5.8 ppg) have combined for 15 blocks.

The reigning conference champions were picked to repeat in this year's Preseason Coaches' Poll, receiving nine of 14 first-place votes, and McDaniel and Kozlova landed on the Preseason All-Sun Belt Second Team. Head coach Sean O'Regan is in his eighth season leading the Dukes.

Up Next
ODU will be back at Chartway Arena next week for a pair of home games against App State on Jan. 25 at 6:30 p.m. and versus Georgia State on Jan. 27 at 1 p.m.