Marquette finally has a real game to play today. Its time for Buzz Williams to take his team to the Kohl Center in Madison and play Bo Ryan's Badgers. Both teams are ranked in the top 20 this week so it should be a competitive game. It will be the first real test for MU and they will be walking into a lion's den where visitors rarely win.
The game probably means more to the alumni than it does to the team. For Buzz and his players its a game to help them get ready for the Big East season. For us its all about bragging rights in our state. Many of us have neighbors, co-workers, and even family members who are Badger alumni or fans.
Marquette comes in with an undefeated record of 6-0 so far. They have only had one game closer than 20 points so far but have not played any ranked teams. Mount St Mary's was their first victim 91-37 in the opener and then they blew out Winthrop 95-73 and Mississippi 96-66 in the first two rounds of the Paradise Jam Tournament in the Virgin Islands.
They won the championship by beating Norfolk State in the finals 59-57. This has been the only game in which they have been challenged. Norfolk State lost to MU in Milwaukee only a week earlier by 31 points 99-68 but Norfolk changed their defensive philosophy by playing various zones and sending everyone back on missed shots to prevent easy fast break points for Marquette. Their game plan slowed down the game and kept it close all the way to the end but they could never take the lead and Marquette held on for the win.
DJO was elected MVP and Jae Crowder made the all-tournament team. These two are providing the senior leadership that Buzz likes about his team's development. There have also been valuable contributions from the other three starters, Chris Otule, Junior Cadougan and Vander Blue who has shown much improvement from last year. They also have a talented young bench that is made up of all sophomores and freshmen.
Redshirt sophomore Jamil Wilson has the length to help inside and the quickness and shooting ability to play outside while freshman Todd Mayo has shown off his variety of offensive moves. He plays hard on defense which Buzz insists on so he can get his minutes. These two along with sophomore Davante Gardner at center and freshmen Derrick Wilson at point guard should give Buzz a reliable nine man rotation. Sophomore Jamail Jones has shown he can shoot the three and freshmen Juan Anderson has played with good hustle in his limited minutes so Buzz should be able to count on both players for solid minutes when he needs them.
Marquette has only one other player on the team, walk-on transfer junior Jake Thomas who is returning to southeast Wisconsin to play his last two years of eligibility. He must sit out this year.
Since returning to Milwaukee the MU team has only played one game which was another blowout beating Jacksonville 88-56. Now its time to start their real games.
This year should be just as exciting as last year but with more victories in Big East play than last year's total of nine. Wisconsin, Washington in the Jimmy V Classic, and Vanderbilt will provide tough contests during the December nonconference schedule before we start Big East play against Villanova on New Year's Day.
GO WARRIORS!!
Go Warriors. Hail Skins!
ReplyDeleteMU did very well and if the Badgers can’t fix those droughts….they are toast this year.
ReplyDeleteRyan's too good a coach for them to have too much trouble but they're probably a little overrated right now. They gave UNC a tough game and actually played better in that game than against MU.
ReplyDeleteThey'll probably finish in the top four in the Big Ten behind Ohio State and maybe a couple other teams. I think Michigan and Illinois are off to good starts and you can never count out MSU and Purdue.
Do you think Crean's running out of time??
Never saw so many white guys in one place!
ReplyDeleteUK back in the day
ReplyDeleteI do think Crean is on death watch. He has had a few years now and no improvement.
ReplyDeleteSkonsin has had the “droughts” for years. They need a pure shooter that can come in and get a couple to keep them in the game.
Bud and I were talking last night and we agreed that UW should have won both games but for the droughts. They also need to get the ball up court a little faster. Don’t have to shoot but yeah…a little faster up court. They waste a lot of time in the back court and that takes away chances around the basket.
We will see what happens.