We are half way through the conference slate and Marshall is tied for 3rd place with a
record of 6-3 (11-11 overall). One of the biggest reasons for their success this year has to do
with the play of Obinna Anochili-Killen. With losing the likes of Taevion Kinsey, Andy Taylor, and
Micah Handlogten, someone on this Herd team needed to replace a lot of the production and
Obinna has stepped up to the plate. Obinna has had quite an up and down college career, with
a massive jump from his freshman year to sophomore year and then a mild drop off last season.
This year, he is averaging a career high in points and has been the steady force guiding
Marshall to its hot start in conference play. I wanted to dive into the number to really see what
has changed from last year to this year to increase his points per game. Let’s dive in.
I think even Obinna would tell you that last year was not his finest work. It seemed as if
he wasn’t able to find a solid rhythm and mesh well with the squad last year. Regardless of the
exact reason, Anochili-Killen averaged just 8.7 points and 4.7 rebounds while shooting 48.9%
from the floor. The biggest challenge for him was the three ball; Obinna shot just 14% from
three last season on 1.6 attempts per game. However this year, he has doubled up his scoring
average with 16.3 points per game (7.6 more than last year) while adding 6.3 boards. It is
important to note that he is also playing 8 more minutes per game so far this season (33.6 per
game up from 25.3), but that doesn’t explain the entirety of the leap. When you look at his
overall stats and percentages, a lot of it looks the same and even worse than last year. His
offensive rating of 106.9 is actually down 0.1 from last year’s 107.0 and his effective field goal
percentage and true shooting percentage are only up slightly. So if he isn’t much more
statistically efficient, how has his numbers improved that drastically? Two things: three point
percentage and free throw rate.
First, I want to talk about his increased three point percentage. Obinna is shooting
35.7% from the three point line this year. Throughout the country that is a pretty solid
percentage, but for Obinna, it is a drastic improvement from his 14% clip in 2023. Last season,
he shot 14% on 1.6 attempts per game, which comes out to 0.2 threes made per game or 0.6
points. However, this season Anochili-Killen is shooting almost 36% on 3.1 attempts per game.
This comes out to 1.1 made threes per game or 3.3 points. So to put this all in perspective,
Obinna is shooting way more efficiently on double the amount of three-point attempts per game
this season as opposed to last and it comes out to 2.7 more points per game on his average.
When his three-ball is going in, it makes him harder to guard and prepare for and it really opens
up the floor for the rest of the team. Defenses can no longer feel comfortable leaving him on the
perimeter to show help; they have to be glued onto him at all times.
The second main reason for his senior season leap is his ability to get to the free throw
line. Obinna has more than doubled the amount of trips he takes to the free throw line this year.
Last season, he only shot 2.8 free throws per game, however this year that number is up to a
whooping 7.2. Not only is he getting to the line more frequently, but he is also converting on a
higher clip. He is shooting .03% better (66% this year and 63% last), which is marginal, but still
plays a role in this. Overall, Anochili-Killen is averaging exactly 3 more points per game from the
free throw line this year. His ability to get to the line has been a key force for this Marshall’s
offensive and has stabilized them in times of need.
So, if we combine the increased three point percentage and free throw rate from this
year compared to last, we see that Obinna is averaging 5.7 more points per game. That number
is a huge chunk of the 7.6 more points he’s averaging this year as opposed to last and with the
increased minutes and usage it paints a pretty exact picture of how Obinna has been able to
take this leap in production for a Marshall team that really needed it. We are only half way
through conference play, but if Marshall has any chance of maintaining a top 4 seed and a
possible Sun Belt Regular Season Championship, Anochili-Killen is going to have to continue
his efficient outside shooting and aggressive play.
