James Madison Dukes vs Marshall Thundering Herd Prediction, 1/9/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: James Madison Dukes vs Marshall Thundering Herd

Date: Thursday, January 9, 2025

Location: Cam Henderson Center in Huntington, WV

TV: ESPN+

Cam Henderson Center is where the Marshall Thundering Herd (8-8) will try to defeat the James Madison Dukes (9-6) on Thursday.

The James Madison Dukes stepped onto the hardwood against Arkansas State and notched a win by a score of 67-62 in their last contest. James Madison finished the contest with a 40.7% field goal percentage (24 of 59) and buried 6 of their 19 shots from distance. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Dukes buried 13 of 18 tries for a percentage of 72.2%. Concerning pulling down boards, they compiled a total of 37 with 12 of them being on the offensive end. They also distributed 6 dimes for this contest while forcing 9 turnovers and earning 6 steals. In terms of the defense, James Madison allowed the other team to go 44.3% from the field on 27 of 61 shooting. Arkansas State dished out 8 assists and had 7 steals for the contest. In addition, Arkansas State grabbed 26 boards (8 offensive, 18 defensive), but didn't have a block. Arkansas State shot 37.5% when shooting free throws by knocking down 3 of their 8 shots. They also converted 5 of their 17 tries from beyond the arc. When discussing fouls, the Dukes ended up walking away with 11 while Arkansas State had 17 fouls.

Xavier Brown is one guy who was a factor in the game. He ended up with 18 points on 7 out of 12 shooting. He played for 37 minutes and also snagged 5 rebounds. He walked away from this one shooting 58.3% from the floor and distributed 2 dimes.

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James Madison will enter this game with a record of 9-6 for the season. They currently have an average of 74.7 points per game (204th in the nation) while connecting on 45.0% from the field. The Dukes are hitting 35.9% on shots beyond the perimeter (141 of 393) and 71.4% from the free throw line. As a team, James Madison is collecting 37.6 boards per contest and has totaled 200 dimes so far this season, which is 225th in D-1 in terms of passing. They turn it over 12.1 times per game and as a team are committing 15.6 personal fouls per contest.

On the defensive end, the Dukes have forced 10.3 turnovers per game while drawing 15.7 personal fouls. They are ranked 41st in college in allowing assists with 160 relinquished on the campaign. The Dukes defense is giving up a field goal percentage of 44.3% (381 of 860) and they concede 31.1 boards per game as a group. They are surrendering 29.9% from 3-point land while they are 122nd in the country in points per game allowed (69.1).

When they last stepped on the court, the Marshall Thundering Herd took a loss by a score of 58-57 against Troy. The Thundering Herd were able to snag 23 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive boards totaling 32 for this contest. They turned it over 13 times, while getting 8 steals in this game. Troy committed 20 personal fouls for this game which got the Thundering Herd to the charity stripe for a total of 17 tries. They were able to bury 10 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 58.8%. In the matter of shots from beyond the perimeter, Marshall converted 3 of 16 attempts (18.8%). Overall, the Thundering Herd went 22 out of 56 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 39.3%. The Thundering Herd permitted Troy to bury 19 of 51 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 37.3% for this game. They shot 22.6% from beyond the perimeter by shooting 7 out of 31 and walked away from this one shooting 13 of 17 at the charity stripe (76.5%). In relation to rebounding, Marshall permitted Troy to snag 26 in total (6 on the offensive glass).

Obinna Anochili-Killen ended up being important for the Thundering Herd for the matchup. He earned 17 points in his 34 minutes on the hardwood, but went home with no dimes. He made 8 out of 12 for this contest giving him a rate of 66.7%, and accounted for 9 rebounds.

Marshall has a win-loss record of 8-8 so far this season. On the offensive side of the court, the Thundering Herd are shooting 43.9% from the field, which has them ranked 237th in the nation. Marshall has tallied 1,198 points this year (74.9 per game) and they pull in 37.0 rebounds per contest. They are getting an assist 14.3 times per game (169th in college) and they turn the ball over 12.3 times per contest. The Thundering Herd commit 20.8 fouls every game and they hit 67.4% from the charity stripe.

The Marshall defense surrenders 31.5% on 3-pointers (93 of 295) and their opponents are knocking down 70.7% of their free throw attempts. They have allowed 10.6 dimes and 35.4 rebounds per contest, which has them ranked 35th and 246th in the nation. The Thundering Herd defensively are ranked 192nd in college in points allowed per contest with 71.3. They are able to force 13.6 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 44.0% from the field (231st in Division 1).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Marshall

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