Free Live Odds - Scores and Odds - Sports News - Sports Information - Live Scores - Sports Statistics - Sports Articles - Sports Standings - Live Scor

GAME NOTES: The Marshall Thundering Herd will try to extend their win streak when they visit Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston to take on the Rice Owls in a Conference USA clash.

Marshall enters the game looking for a sixth straight win following Saturday's 58-55 victory at Tulane. The Thundering Herd have been quite streaky this season, as they've also posted a seven-game win streak and another six-game win streak, in addition to a five-game skid that preceded their current run. The Herd currently hold down fourth place in the C-USA standings (8-4) with three games remaining on the schedule after tonight.

On the other hand, Rice has sunk to the bottom of the conference standings with a 1-11 mark in league play. On Saturday, the Owls suffered a 76-65 loss at the hands of East Carolina. Seven of the Owls' eight wins this season have come at Tudor Fieldhouse, although they have not beaten a conference opponent at home all year.

Marshall holds a slim 3-2 series edge, although Rice knocked off the Herd in last year's C-USA Tournament, 60-59.

Thanks to Saturday's gritty win at Tulane, Marshall has its first 20-win season since the 1996-97 campaign. After shooting a dismal 8-of-29 (.276) from the floor in the first half, the Herd woke up and knocked down 14-of-22 (.636) field goal attempts in the second stanza. Tyler Wilkerson finished with a team-high 18 points and nine rebounds, while Hassan Whiteside registered 10 points and seven blocks. Whiteside, who is only a freshman, has already shattered the school record for blocks in a season and currently leads all of Division I in that category. He has swatted a remarkable 142 shots on the year (5.26 per game). Whiteside is a five-time C-USA Rookie of the Week and appears to be getting better with each game, as he now averages 13.0 points and a team-best 8.6 rebounds per game. Wilkerson leads the squad with 13.8 ppg to go along with 7.0 rpg, as he and Whiteside are both shooting better than 50 percent from the floor. Shaquille Johnson (10.3 ppg) and Damier Pitts (10.1 ppg) add to the scoring mix, while Chris Lutz (8.6 ppg) has shooting at a mesmerizing 54.1 percent clip from the perimeter (33-of-61) since January 2nd.

Tamir Jackson scored a career-high 22 points for Rice on Saturday against East Carolina. Lucas Kuipers chipped in with 14 points, but the Owls shot just 37.3 percent as a team. They especially struggled from long range, connecting on just 3-of-23 (.130) three-point attempts. Rice is shooting just 31 percent from beyond the arc on the season, but Saturday's effort was simply woeful from start to finish. And considering the Owls' struggles to score points on a consistent basis, a poor three-point shooting night of that magnitude is almost impossible to overcome. Jackson leads the team with 11.4 ppg and has not missed a start. Arsalan Kazemi is shooting 55.9 percent from the floor down low. He is putting up 10.6 point and a team-best 9.0 rebounds per game, but scoring contributions from the rest of the supporting cast have been sporadic. As a team, the Owls are shooting just 40.6 percent from the floor and are netting 64.4 ppg.

While Rice did win the most recent meeting between these two teams in last year's conference tourney, this year's Owls squad is just not the same caliber. If the Herd play to the level they've played during their current win streak, they should have little trouble pulling out another victory tonight.