The Marshall Thundering Herd take on the Old Dominion Monarchs. Our college basketball odds series has our Marshall Old Dominion prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Marshall Old Dominion.

The Sun Belt Conference has had a very fun race in this college basketball season. As we head to the final few games, Marshall and Southern Mississippi are tied for the lead at 13-4 in the conference. The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns are third at 12-5, one game back. James Madison, a new member of the Sun Belt, is in fourth at 11-6. Old Dominion is tied with Troy for fifth place at 10-7.

You can see that this game means a lot for Marshall, given that the Thundering Herd are trying to win a conference championship and get a top seed for the conference tournament plus a guaranteed automatic bid to the NIT if they don't win the Sun Belt Tournament. Everyone can recognize this. Yet, this game is also important to Old Dominion even though the Monarchs don't have a shot at winning the Sun Belt title. Old Dominion is trying to get into the top four so that it can get a double-bye at the Sun Belt Tournament. If Old Dominion has to play only three games instead of four to win the NCAA Tournament, that's a pretty big deal. Both teams — not just Marshall alone — need this game quite a lot.

Here are the Marshall-Old Dominion college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel:

College Basketball Odds: Marshall-Old Dominion Odds

Marshall Thundering Herd: -3.5 (-102)

Old Dominion Monarchs: +3.5 (-120)

Over: 148.5 (-110)

Under: 148.5 (-110)

How To Watch Marshall vs. Old Dominion

TV: ESPN+

Stream: ESPN+

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Time: 7:00 p.m. ET, 4:00 p.m. PT

*Watch Marshall-Old Dominion LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*

Why Marshall Could Cover The Spread

The Thundering Herd have set the pace in the Sun Belt this season, alongside Southern Miss. Marshall is 24-6 through 30 games, a very impressive performance for a team in a one-bid conference. The Thundering Herd love to run up and down the floor and push the pace. They have scored at least 84 points in each of their last five games, all wins. Marshall is in a good rhythm, and it is obviously very hard for Sun Belt opponents to pull the Herd out of that groove. When a college basketball team is regularly scoring in the 80s, that means lots of players are getting involved. This is a lot more than one player having the hot hand. The ball is moving. Players are sharing the rock and are working for quality shots. Everything is coming together for Marshall, which is certainly playing like an NCAA Tournament-level team at the moment.

Why Old Dominion Could Cover The Spread

The Monarchs have won four of their last five games. In each of those four wins, the Monarchs have allowed no more than 68 points. Marshall wants to play games in the 80s, but Old Dominion has shown an ability to play games in the 60s. The old saying is that it's easier to slow a game down than speed a game up, especially in the postseason or late-season situations involving familiar opponents. The Monarchs will rely on a slower tempo, and the fact that they are playing at home, to push them over the finish line against a really good Marshall team.

Final Marshall-Old Dominion Prediction & Pick

Stay away from this game. It feels very much up in the air.

Final Marshall-Old Dominion Prediction & Pick: Old Dominion +3.5