FRESHMAN SENSATION

Hassan Whiteside may soon become a household name throughout the country.

While only a freshman, the 7-foot, 235-pound forward has burst onto the scene this season with the Thundering Herd.

He not only leads the team in rebounds, but leads the nation in blocked shots - something that could help Marshall in tonight's Capital Classic with West Virginia.

Marshall is riding a six-game winning streak and a Conference-USA best 15-2 record.

NBAdraft.net has Whiteside as the second overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. In comparison, West Virginia's Devin Ebanks is projected to go 11th this season with senior forward Da'Sean Butler going 32nd.

"He's going to make a difference," said WVU head coach Bob Huggins. "I think they can show some different things defensively because of him, because they've got a goalkeeper."

Whiteside already has recorded two triple-double performances this season, including a 17-point, 14-rebound and 11-block showing against Brescia.

He nearly recorded his third triple-double in Marshall's 89-79 win over Tulane Saturday, ending just two blocks shy.

Although still developing his offensive tools, Whiteside leads the nation in blocked shots. The freshman has blocked 10 or more shots twice this season and has at least five blocks in all but six of the Thundering Herd's contests.

A product of The Patterson School, which is known for its basketball tradition and has produced players such as Syracuse's Wes Johnson, Whiteside is currently second in Conference USA in rebounds (9.4 rpg) and is second on the team in points (12.6 ppg) despite only starting eight games and averaging 24 minutes this season.

He has led the team in rebounds 12 games and in points six different times.

"He's scoring double figures; double figures for a freshman is pretty good," Huggins said. "He's just so long, so active, and he gets his hands on a lot of balls."

Whiteside is one of the biggest reasons the Thundering Herd and head coach Donnie Jones may crack the top 25 ranking sometime soon. MU is the winner of six straight while its only losses this season have come on the road to powerhouse North Carolina and Old Dominion.

The Herd have also scored more than 100 points three times this season, although their highest offensive output of 135 points came against Division II Salem International (Clarksburg, W.Va.), who is currently on probation for allowing 16 ineligible athletes to participate in athletics from 2002 to 2008.

"It's the best one (Marshall teams) since I've been here," Huggins said.

Whiteside's emergence has helped free up 6-foot-8 forward Tyler Wilkerson, who currently leads the team with 12.7 points per game.

The senior is one of four players averaging more than 10 points per game this season and one of seven averaging double figures in conference play.

The Herd will need all the help they can get against a West Virginia squad that holds a 27-10 all-time mark against them.

The contest between the two in-state rivals has been played consecutively since 1989 with the series permanently moving to the Charleston Civic Center in 1992, where the Mountaineers have held a 14-4 record since.

West Virginia overcame used a standout victory from point guard Truck Bryant to claim a 87-76 win in front of 12,580 fans in attendance at the Civic Center last season.

The contest was physical as five players fouled out while the Mountaineers played four players in double-figure scoring, including Bryant's 22-point performance.

The last time Marshall trumped WVU was in 2006 when it held on to a 58-52 win, just one year after beating the Mountaineers 59-55 in 2005.