DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The surf was up Thursday at the world's most famous beach and some hearty souls were riding the waves in the Atlantic Ocean, or sunning themselves in the mid-60 degree weather.

But, that was outside. Inside, the Marshall men's basketball team tuned up for the Glenn Wilkes Classic with an afternoon practice at the Ocean Center. Marshall (1-0) plays Morgan State (1-2) at 2 p.m. today.

Marshall, Morgan State and Green Bay all play three games in the exempt event while Utah and Mississippi play twice in a three-day period. Rollins College from Winter Park, Fla., was added to the field for one game, much like the Marshall season opener played Sunday in Huntington against WVU Tech.

Thundering Herd opponents offer different styles. Morgan State and Green Bay prefer a slow pace with scores in the 60s. Ole Miss plays a more wide-open game.

"The biggest thing is finding out what is working and what you have to improve on," Marshall coach Donnie Jones said. "You don't want to play teams that all play fast and you don't want to play everybody that plays slow.

"That will help us prepare for our games in Conference USA."

The Herd wants to play at warp speed, applying constant pressure on offense and defense while taking other teams out of what they want to do.

That was definitely the case in the opener, a 110-57 rout of a WVU Tech team that committed 23 turnovers. Freshman guard Shaquille Johnson led Marshall scorers against WVU Tech with 19, but senior forward Markel Humphrey and junior guard Chris Lutz both scored 14, junior forward Tyler Wilkerson scored 13 and senior guard Darryl Merthie added 10.

Another benefit of playing in an early-season tournament format is learning to prepare for games with a short turnaround, Jones said.

Marshall's game today will end at about 4 p.m. and the coaching staff will stay to scout later games involving Green Bay and Ole Miss while the players return to the hotel and have dinner.

Jones said a team meeting tonight in the hotel ballroom will be used to go over the Green Bay scouting report.

Saturday morning breakfast will be followed by a pre-game walkthrough in the hotel ballroom.

The same itinerary will be repeated before afternoon games Saturday and Sunday.

Jones said he will look at various player combinations to "figure out where we're at."

One player everyone will be watching is 6-foot-10, 304-pound sophomore Marcus Goode, who had eight points and 11 rebounds Sunday in his college debut. Goode was at an optometrist Tuesday getting eyeglasses.

"He has needed them for a long time," Jones said. "It will make a huge difference in time."

Morgan State flew in from New York City after losing a tough 61-60 game Wednesday night at Manhattan. The Jaspers won on Antoine Pearson's underhand, off-balance, falling down shot from the lane with nine seconds remaining.

The Morgan State Bears, from Baltimore, Md., were tabbed as the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference preseason favorite. Last season coach Todd Bozeman's club was 22-11 and played in the NIT.

Marcus Kately for the Bears was a preseason All-MEAC first team selection. Kately, a 6-5 forward, averages 9.3 points and 7.3 rebounds. Junior guard Reggie Holmes is scoring 10.1 points a game.

Marshall worked Thursday at taking care of the basketball in anticipation of Morgan State's physical defense.

"They play hard and defend," Jones said. "They're going to grind it and guard you hard. And they have very good size. Their low post No. 33 (Kevin Thompson) can score."

Thompson, a 6-8, 240-pound freshman, averages 9.3 points and 4.3 rebounds.

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