No. 11/15 Marquette Travels To Wisconsin Saturday
Game Notes:
http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/marq/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/mu_uwgamenotes.pdfThe No. 11/15 Marquette men's basketball team wraps up the road portion of its non-conference schedule Saturday afternoon when the squad travels to in-state rival Wisconsin. The opening tip is slated for 5 p.m. CT and will be featured on ESPN2, MU's fourth nationally televised game of the campaign. Terry Gannon (play-by-play) and Jay Bilas (analyst) will call the action from the Kohl Center.
The matchup will mark Marquette's first true road outing of the season. MU has played three neutral-site games early in 2007-08, but has yet to take the court in a true opposing environment.
Wisconsin leads the all-time series 62-51, most recently posting a 70-66 decision over the Golden Eagles in 2006-07. The Badgers currently own a 28-game homecourt winning streak, the third-longest active run in the nation. Marquette last left Madison victorious on Nov. 14, 1997, when the team earned a 65-60 decision.
Golden Eagles Reach Century Mark In Win Over UWM
Marquette renewed its series with crosstown opponent UW-Milwaukee by posting an impressive 100-65 victory over the Panthers on Nov. 30.
MU's 100-point effort marked the first time the team has reached the century mark since the 101-92 win over Missouri (3/22/03) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Golden Eagles improved to 35-0 all time versus the Panthers, extending the NCAA's second-longest current winning streak over a single opponent.
Sophomore guard Maurice Acker's jumper with 1:32 remaining in the second half resulted in the 100th point being added to the scoreboard.
MU Values The Ball; Enjoys "Giving" Season Against UWM
Marquette's impressive offensive showing in the 100-point effort against UWM was the result of a number of factors, not the least of which were valuing possessions and sharing the ball.
The Golden Eagles turned the ball over on just seven occasions, matching a single-game low for a Tom Crean coached squad at Marquette. Since Crean's arrival in 1999-2000, MU has finished the night with just seven miscues in a total of seven outings. Previous to Monday night, Marquette last accomplished the feat at East Carolina on Feb. 12, 2005.
The Golden Eagles also picked up 26 assists on 40 baskets in the win over the Panthers, collecting an assist-to-turnover ratio of nearly 4-to-1. MU last collected that many assists in an 88-40 victory over Lewis on Dec. 28, 2005.
McNeal, Matthews Continue To Crash The Boards
One of the keys to Marquette's success this season will be the consistency of the guard corps to contribute on the glass at both ends of the court.
Through games of Dec. 3, junior Jerel McNeal currently tops all league guards with a season average of 4.8 rebounds per game. Classmate Wesley Matthews is contributing 4.2 boards per outing to rank sixth among players at his position.
Marquette's guards are currently combining to chip in 16.9 rebounds per game or 48.0 percent of the team's 35.2 boards per outing.
Among all of the guards returning from 2006-07, Matthews (5.3 rpg.) and McNeal (4.8 rpg.) ranked first and second, respectively, in terms of caroms per contest.
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