HUNTINGTON — On Thursday, Marshall basketball guard Marko Sarenac will celebrate his 22nd birthday by helping the Thundering Herd take on Campbell.
For Sarenac, there has been plenty of celebration in the early part of the season.
Sarenac, who was somewhat off the radar in the rotation a few weeks ago, has emerged into one of the Herd’s more consistent players to start the season.
“Marko is solid, really solid,†Marshall head coach Dan D’Antoni said.
In the preseason, D’Antoni was trying to work down his rotation into a manageable scenario with anywhere from seven to nine players. At the time, Sarenac was on the outside looking in when it came to that rotation.
However, after Sarenac was moved out of that initial rotation of players, he started to work his way back through strong practices.
In one particular 20-minute intrasquad session prior to the team’s exhibitions, Sarenac knocked down six 3-pointers, several contested, that had everyone on the team buzzing at the session’s end.
Since that time, Sarenac has been back in the rotation and he has not cooled off.
Through two games, Sarenac leads the team with five 3-pointers made while shooting them at a 56% clip.
“It’s all hard work,†Sarenac said. “I’m trying to be focused as much as I can in every game and make those shots. I get open and I’ll take the shot. That’s how I think I’m going to help the team.â€
In Monday’s game against Milligan, Sarenac was a perfect 4 of 4 from the floor while knocking down three 3-pointers, all of which came during a 13-0 run in which the Herd put the game away.
The run ended with Sarenac forcing a steal on the inside then getting out on the break with Taevion Kinsey. As Kinsey worked the ball to the frontcourt, Sarenac found an open area on the left wing and knocked down a 3-pointer.
Sarenac said his offensive confidence of late stems from the defensive end where he’s also been strong through two games.
In the season-opening win over Wright State, Sarenac finished with four blocks, including three in a final eight-minute burst that propelled the Herd’s comeback.
Sarenac said that part of his resurgence this season involves the closeness of the team and the chemistry the players built through the offseason and preseason.
“As a group, we are really close friends and I think you can see that on the court,†Sarenac said. “We know each other very well. We are good friends off the court and especially on the court. I think you can see that.â€
On Thursday, the Herd meets a team in Campbell that took Duke down to the wire last week in a game at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Whether as a knock-down shooter or as a tough perimeter defender with length, Sarenac will have a key role in the Herd’s success on Thursday — a role that he has carved out for himself through his play.
Tipoff at the Henderson center Thursday is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Sarenac has a plus/minus of plus-28 in the two games, which has only been eclipsed by Taevion Kinsey (plus-33) and Obinna Anochili-Killen (plus-32).
That efficiency has Sarenac — once potentially on his way out of the rotation — firmly entrenched as a key figure for the Herd in the 2021-22 season.
