Adam Brown and the Cougars will need to increase the level of tenacity in the closing minutes to avoid a four-game losing streak tonight against Marshall. The Cougars are 9-2 in games played at Hofheinz Pavilion. | Newton Liu/The Daily Cougar
The Cougars will try to avoid losing their fourth straight game when they take on Marshall for a brief one-game homestand.
The Cougars (11-9, 3-4 Conference USA) know that they will have their work cut out for them against a Marshall team that has posted impressive wins this season. The most recent win for the Thundering Herd came in the form of an 85-70 clobbering of Memphis on Saturday. Memphis was on top of the C-USA standings before losing.
Marshall (14-7, 2-4) has had strong production from freshman guard DeAndre Kane and from junior guard Damier Pitts, who both average 15.3 points per game.
While Marshall is coming off arguably its best win of the season, the Cougars have stumbled, dropping their third game in a row against ECU on Saturday.
Head coach James Dickey knows that the team has given itself a chance to be competitive every time they step foot on the court.
“For us it’s just a matter of finishing games,” Dickey said. “I’ve been pleased with the way that our guys have competed. The effort has been good. But we have to be good for 40 minutes rather than for 37 or 38 minutes.”
Dickey also said that sophomore forward Kirk Van Slyke, who was held out of Saturday’s contest against ECU for undisclosed reasons, will be available and ready to play Tuesday.
Seeking a stronger mindset
Senior guard Adam Brown says that the team has to play a tougher, more intense style in order to win games.
“Killer instinct is hard to come across,” Brown said. “But we’re too nice out there on the court.
“We need to bring that so-called ‘dog’ out of us.”
Brown leads the team with 14.8 points per game and is an essential part of the Cougar backcourt, directed by fellow senior Zamal Nixon.
Nixon averages 8.9 points and five assists each outing.
Although Nixon said he agrees that the Cougars are capable of winning every game; he says the team can always improve on its mishaps.
“We just have to keep learning from our mistakes,” Nixon said. “When it gets down to those close games, and we’re going to have a lot of them, we just have to do a better job of executing.”
Tonight’s game tips off at 8 p.m. at Hofheinz Pavilion.
Memphis is still on top of C-USA standings. Since UTEP lost by a point to Tulsa, Memphis, UTEP, and UAB moved into a three-way tie for first place. Fact-checking is your friend, Coogz.