MEMPHIS — Marshall's basketball team excels at picks.

Pick-and-rolls. Picks for Chris Lutz. Down picks.

But as good as the Herd is at all those various picks, Marshall's players are even better at another pick.

Namely, picking the Conference USA all-league team.

Just compare Marshall's All-Opponent Team, which the players voted on Saturday night, to the C-USA all-league team, which was unveiled Monday.

Guess what?

The first teams are identical.

After losing to UAB Saturday, nine Marshall players (including the injured Tyler Wilkerson) were polled. They voted on both a five-man All-Opponent Team as well as an Opponent of the Year.

UCF's Jermaine Taylor was the only unanimous choice, getting all nine votes. Taylor, who leads C-USA in scoring with a 26.6-point average, also was selected Opponent of the Year with five first-place votes.

Joining him on Marshall's All-Opponent Team were UTEP's Stefon Jackson with eight votes; Memphis' Tyreke Evans, six votes; Houston's Aubrey Coleman, five votes; and Tulsa's Jerome Jordan, five votes.

Now, check out the C-USA first team. Bingo. Same exact five.

And as if that weren't psychic enough, the Marshall All-Opponent Team's second five included four of the five members of Conference USA's second team.

The Marshall squad included UAB teammates Robert Vaden and Paul Delaney III with three votes each; Memphis' Antonio Anderson, two; UAB's Lawrence Kinnard, two; and Tulsa's Ben Uzoh, one.

The only difference between that five and C-USA's second team was Memphis' Robert Dozier, who made the all-league team instead of Kinnard.

But, otherwise, the Herd's All-Opponent team was spooky accurate.

And don't be surprised if UCF's Taylor -- Marshall's Opponent of the Year -- continues the Herd's uncanny accuracy by winning C-USA Player of the Year honors.

So, when Rice takes on Marshall at 1 p.m. Wednesday in the Conference USA Tournament here at FedExForum, the Owls had better be wary of Marshall's screens.

The Herd is on a pick. ... and roll.

When is the last time the Huntington community literally embraced a Marshall basketball player?

It has been a while.

But that's precisely what happened when Humphrey and his mother, Sabrina Mitchell, showed up for Donnie Jones' call-in radio show at Gino's Pub last Thursday.

Coming on the heels of Humphrey's poetic kiss-the-court exit the night before, his appearance at Gino's quickly turned into a lovefest.

Humphrey has become a beloved individual.

And rightfully so.

It was Humphrey who put the decimated Marshall team on his back nine games ago when the depleted roster atrophied to only eight players.

Since then, Humphrey -- chronically injured feet and all -- has averaged 18.9 points and 7.3 rebounds.

The result was Marshall winning six of its final nine regular-season games and earning a best-ever No. 7 seed in the Conference USA Tournament.

Would Marshall have accomplished any of that without Humphrey's inspirational play?

Absolutely not.

That's why it was so appropriate that Humphrey was named to a C-USA all-league team Monday for the fourth consecutive season -- including the All-Freshman squad in 2006.

It was a well-deserved honor.

But there is one more accolade that's still pending.

Sometime in the not so distant future, Marshall needs to retire Markel Humphrey's jersey.

That would be a fitting tribute.

Chuck Landon is a sports columnist for The Herald-Dispatch. Call him at 526-2827. E-mail him at clandon@herald-dispatch.com.

National Video