http://insider.espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/8514437/blue-ribbon-2012-13-college-basketball-preview-marquette-golden-eagles (http://insider.espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/8514437/blue-ribbon-2012-13-college-basketball-preview-marquette-golden-eagles)
COACH AND PROGRAM
There were enough pieces in place to believe that Marquette could be a Big East contender in the 2011-12 season. But when the Golden Eagles lost on the road to two of the league's premier teams, Georgetown and Syracuse, in the first week of the season, the temptation was to scale back on the expectations a bit.
But neither coach Buzz Williams nor his two best players, Jae Crowder and Darius Johnson-Odom, tolerated the early stumble. Marquette embarked on a seven-game winning streak after the Syracuse game and sailed through the season with a 14-4 Big East record, trailing only Syracuse. That marked the most conference victories in the Golden Eagles' seven seasons in the conference and earned them a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament.
The 6-6 Crowder, who showed a marvelous shooting touch inside and outside and played with passion at the defensive end and on the boards, wound up as the Big East player of the year, averaging 17.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.5 steals. His 14 double-doubles were third in the conference behind West Virginia's Kevin Jones and Seton Hall's Herb Pope.
Johnson-Odom developed into a true sniper from behind the arc. The 6-2 lefthander led the team with an 18.3-point average. From 3-point land, he connected on 38.5 percent of his shots and averaged 2.26 treys. He joined Crowder on the all-conference first team.
Together, Crowder and Johnson-Odom, both of whom transferred to Marquette from junior colleges, represented the highest-scoring duo in the league last season. They also carried the Golden Eagles to their second straight NCAA Sweet 16 and the team's first back-to-back trips to the regional semifinals in 35 years. Crowder poured in 25 points in a second-round win over BYU and the two players scored 17 apiece in a victory over upstart Murray State. The run ended on a poor shooting night at the West Regional semifinal in Phoenix, where the pair shot a combined 10 of 30 in a 68-58 loss to Florida.
"I will miss who they are as people, and our returning players will miss who they were as teammates," Williams said. "DJ and Jae continued to progress in their leadership with each passing year they were here. By the end of their careers here, they were absolutely critical to our persona as a unit on the floor.
"Jae went from not receiving an all-league vote at the conclusion of his first year here to being player of the year the following year. We are excited about our returning guys and we all understand the value that DJ and Jae gave to our program on and off the floor."
With their departure, Crowder and Johnson-Odom took their proficient offensive skills with them. The pair combined to tally nearly 47 percent of Marquette's points, and accounted for more than two-thirds of its 3-point goals.
No returning player for Marquette averaged more than 9.5 points per game. While candidates exist for the role of go-to guy, Williams isn't identifying one as preseason begins.
"I am not sure we have a go-to guy, but I like the collection of guys we have returning," he said. "As time progresses, we will figure out the best way to go about things. Prior to practice starting, I am not sure that there are natural replacements for [Crowder and Johnson-Odom], but I do think as a unit, we have a variety of ways we can function."
Somehow Williams always finds a way for his team to function. The Golden Eagles apply full-court pressure and play a fast-paced brand of basketball. They led the conference in scoring (75.4 ppg), assists (16.6) and turnovers forced (16.5) last season.
Marquette found a way to be successful without a true center, playing most of the season without 6-11, 275-pound Chris Otule (5.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg). Otule tore the ACL in his left knee in the Golden Eagles' eighth game of the season against Washington. That marked the third injury-marred season for the senior, who will be counted on this season for rebounding, shot blocking and post defense.
Williams said Otule "has been outstanding in the discipline involved in recovering from an ACL surgery.
"A lot of credit goes to Chris, but the time and effort of our trainer and strength coach has been just as important. He is in a great frame of mind. With each week, he is getting closer to 100 percent."
PLAYERS
A healthy Otule will team in the frontcourt with 6-8, 290-pound junior Davante Gardner (9.5 ppg 5.3 rpg), the team's top returning scorer. Gardner missed eight games late in the Big East schedule with a sprained left knee but did a fine job carrying the load inside in the 10 league games he did play, averaging 11.8 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting 58 percent from the field.
Gardner played a significant role in getting Marquette's seven-game win streak started, going for 22 points and 15 rebounds against St. John's on Jan. 11.
"Davante was the deciding factor in several of our games last year before his injury," Williams said. "His innate ability to score in ways you can't predict is as uncanny as any player I have ever seen. Davante's health as we enter the year will be critical. We need him to go from start to finish and continue to improve."
Another member of the Golden Eagles' promising frontcourt is 6-7 junior Jamil Wilson (7.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg), an athletic small forward who has made strides with the team since transferring from Oregon after his freshman season. The team leader in blocked shots last season at 1.4 per game, Wilson was particularly effective in the eight games that Gardner missed.
Wilson had a career game with an 18-point, 10-rebound effort in a win at DePaul, where he shot 8 of 11 from the field and played 39 minutes. He followed that up with 15 points against Cincinnati.
"From the time of Davante's injury, I thought Jamil was our MVP," Williams said. "He was superb. He has incredible instincts and we are expecting him to continue along the path that he finished the last 12 games of the year last year."
It appears as if Marquette will be fine for scoring in the frontcourt if its players stay healthy. As for the guards, Williams welcomes back a solid group, and a couple of players could pick up the scoring slack.
Maybe one of them could be 6-4 junior Vander Blue (8.4 ppg, 4.5 rpg), who hasn't yet reached the level of expectations that accompanied him as one of the higher-rated recruits of the Williams era. Blue posted a career-high 26 points in an early-season win over Winthrop and played steady ball in the Big East season, particularly at the defensive end.
He struggled from the perimeter last season, hitting only 25.8 percent of his 3-point shots. But it was an improvement from the 16 percent mark of his freshman season, and Blue has worked to get his shot better for this season when he will be expected to score more.
"Vander has continued to progress throughout his career here on both ends of the floor, and I expect we will see another marked improvement this year," Williams said. "He has been accountable throughout the entire summer, and I believe all of that work will translate to the court."
Scoring potential also exists in the game of 6-3 sophomore Todd Mayo (7.9 ppg, 2.7 rpg), the brother of NBA star O.J. Mayo. Mayo returns as the team's most prolific 3-point marksman (31 last season) and free-throw shooter (.762).
Mayo, who came off the bench in 33 of his 35 games last season, scored 22 points, his high game for the season, but struggled a bit in midseason and picked up his game late. The coach is hoping for better things from the get-go.
"At times, I thought Todd was really good for us last year," he said. "Like all freshmen, I think he hit a wall. But once he was able to overcome that, I thought down the stretch he was outstanding for us, especially defensively. We anticipate really good things from him this year."
Making it all work for Marquette is 6-1 point guard Junior Cadougan (6.3 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 5.4 apg), a senior and an indisputable favorite of the coach. The Toronto native doesn't look for his own shot, but he finds his teammates in the best possible spot while taking care of the basketball like fine china. In conference play last season, he was third in assists (5.7) and fifth in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.2-1) while averaging 30 minutes per game.
"I absolutely love Junior," Williams said. "I think there are faster guys, better field-goal percentage shooters, but I have always had the utmost belief in who he is and what he is about. He is not as heralded as a lot of the other guys are but he plays to win on every possession. During his entire career here, he has been as steady of a teammate as anyone we have had."
Cadougan, who has started 82 games in his career, trailed only Crowder and Johnson-Odom in minutes last season, and that meant fewer opportunities for his backup, 6-1 sophomore Derrick Wilson (0.6 ppg, 1.1 rpg). Wilson impressed Williams last season with his work on the defensive end. Though he averaged just 8.8 minutes per game, Wilson had a higher ratio of steals to minutes played than anyone on the team except Crowder.
You usually don't see a Marquette roster since Williams took over as head coach without a transfer, and the Golden Eagles have one this season in 6-5 senior Trent Lockett (13.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg). Lockett, who has his de-gree from Arizona State and will be eligible right away, led the Sun Devils in scoring last season and shot al-most 50 percent from the field and better than 41 percent from 3.
Williams called Lockett "a perfect fit for us on and off the floor.
"We are thankful Trent is here. Who he is, is inspiring to me, and how he conducts himself on and off the floor is as good as I have ever seen. Because of those things, I believe he will have a niche for our team from the very beginning."
Juan Anderson (0.7 ppg, 0.8 rpg), a 6-6 sophomore forward who played in 24 games last season, underwent shoulder surgery in May and it's questionable if he'll be ready for the start of the season. Williams said the team is "excited about having his energy back in our workouts."
Jake Thomas, a 6-3 junior who sat out last year after transferring from South Dakota and earned a scholar-ship this season, has a decent perimeter game, part of "a skill set that I believe will be helpful for us over the rest of his career," Williams said.
Williams also is bringing in two freshmen in 6-7 forward Steve Taylor (Simeon HS/Chicago) and 6-4 guard Jamal Ferguson (Maury HS/Norfolk, Va.). Taylor averaged 16.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocks for a team that won three consecutive state championships with him on the roster. Ferguson averaged 17.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
Williams said the two freshmen "have blended in really well since they got here this summer. From my perspective, that is always a healthy sign of things to come, when they blend in with your returning players before individual workouts or practice begins."
Sophomore Garrett Swanson, a 6-7 forward, transferred from Idaho State and will sit out the 2012-13 season.
It was an eventful off-season for Williams. As seems to be the case every year when a season ends, other schools reached out for the energetic Texan, with SMU appearing to be at the front of the line. It got to the point where Williams and athletic director Larry Williams released statements to extinguish further speculation about a move.
The Golden Eagles lost a highly regarded junior college transfer in July when sophomore guard T.J. Taylor withdrew from school after only two weeks on campus.
The following month, top assistant coach Scott Monarch was fired after the findings of an investigation determined he had misled athletic department administrators who wanted to know if he had given team apparel and transportation to a prospective recruit. Williams was suspended for the season's first Big East game on Jan. 1 "in recognition of his duty to monitor the compliance of his staff," the school said.
The dismissal of Monarch means that all three of Marquette's assistant coaches from last season are gone. Tony Benford took the head-coaching job at North Texas, and Aki Collins moved on to Memphis as an assistant.
BLUE RIBBON ANALYSIS
BACKCOURT: B
BENCH/DEPTH: B-
FRONTCOURT: B+
INTANGIBLES: B
Williams has been fortunate during his years at Marquette that he always has had a dependable scorer on whom to rely in every game, from Wes Matthews to Lazar Hayward to Jimmy Butler, all NBA first-round picks. With last year's tandem of Crowder and Johnson-Odom, the team posted the second-most wins in the program's history and held a place in the national rankings every week.
Williams probably isn't as worried as the team's fan base about finding the new offensive star, because he believes in his system of high-pressure defense and high-octane offense where baskets are scored in transition and everyone contributes. But with no double-figure scorers returning, you wonder who the go-to guy will be.
Will it be Blue, who has the skills to be the man? What about Mayo, who starts the season as the Golden Eagles' main 3-point threat but has to be more consistent with his shot? Or will that scorer come from the frontcourt, maybe Gardner, who has shown a deft touch around the basket?
A significant element will be the health of Otule, who is needed to battle tough non-conference opponents and handle the nightly grind of the Big East. Williams also has to find some contributors off the bench; the Golden Eagles have just seven returning upperclassmen while they wait for Anderson to return from surgery, meaning newcomers such as Lockett, Taylor and Ferguson will be jockeying for minutes in the rotation.
But the Williams system is well established. The Big East schedule has some of the tougher conference opponents with Syracuse, Notre Dame, Georgetown and Pittsburgh. How quickly the depth can develop, and how healthy the Golden Eagles can remain, will play major roles in how they fare in the Big East. But if all goes well, they could sneak into the top five and gain yet another NCAA bid.
I thought it was a very good article. the only thing that surprised me was the B- rating for bench depth. How many teams will have a second team equal to Gardner, Taylor, Anderson, Mayo and Wilson?
Good read but the writer said Wes was a 1st round pick. We all know that aint the case, he's worked for his.
Quote from: MisterDMU on October 19, 2012, 10:42:16 AM
Jake Thomas, a 6-3 junior who sat out last year after transferring from South Dakota and earned a scholar-ship this season
Great to hear, I might have to change his status on the scholarship table since he appears to be "on scholarship".
Quote from: MisterDMU on October 19, 2012, 10:42:16 AM
Sophomore Garrett Swanson, a 6-7 forward, transferred from Idaho State and will sit out the 2012-13 season.
Also good to confirm (I think I had this wrong a couple weeks ago).
Thanks for posting the preview!
"There were enough pieces in place to believe that Marquette could be a Big East contender in the 2011-12 season. But when the Golden Eagles lost on the road to two of the league's premier teams, Georgetown and Syracuse, in the first week of the season, the temptation was to scale back on the expectations a bit."
I know this article is not about solely about expectations but am I the only one completely bothered by this quote? Was there actually ANYONE outside the Marquette community believing we were contenders in the Big East, especially after 'Cuse and Gtown game?!?!? I read this and hear people say, "oh yeah we knew Marquette was going to be as good as they were last year, but next year we'll just doubt them again."
Chia,
That quote was written in hindsight, in order to frame the 14-4 season as one performed under lowered expectations.
I think the pre-season coaches poll that year had us at 5 or 6.
That's not really a contender ranking in my eyes.
Quote from: buzzchiapet on October 19, 2012, 11:47:17 PM
"There were enough pieces in place to believe that Marquette could be a Big East contender in the 2011-12 season. But when the Golden Eagles lost on the road to two of the league's premier teams, Georgetown and Syracuse, in the first week of the season, the temptation was to scale back on the expectations a bit."
I know this article is not about solely about expectations but am I the only one completely bothered by this quote? Was there actually ANYONE outside the Marquette community believing we were contenders in the Big East, especially before 'Cuse and Gtown game?!?!? I read this and hear people say, "oh yeah we knew Marquette was going to be as good as they were last year, but next year we'll just doubt them again."
Take into account the circumstances. Before LSU, we were ranked 10th in the country. It's hard not to consider any top-10 team a contender for their league title, even when that league has 3 other top-10 teams. Plenty of people were already doubting UConn after their loss to UCF, which means we were solidly seen as a top-3 Big East team, which pretty much translates to contender.
Of course, after losing both of those games, even most Marquette fans doubted we would be a contender for the Big East title. Yes, there were a lot of winnable games, but it seemed most people were expecting somewhere in the 10-12 range of wins rather than the 14 we finished with. We had just lost 4 of 6 games and didn't look like a team primed to win 12 of their next 13 games. In addition, Syracuse moved to 17-0 (4-0) with that win. I don't think anyone thought we would catch them, especially with them already holding the head-to-head tiebreaker.
I still think everyone picking us at 7 this year is crazy. Yes, we lost 2 guys to the draft, but the Georgetown and Cincy teams that already finished behind us last year are losing just as much. Pittsburgh finished 5-13 and lost their leading scorer; granted I think losing Gibbs is a good thing, but picking them ahead of us? We should be 3rd or 4th in these polls, because that's where we'll likely finish, or higher, especially with our only games against Syracuse and Notre Dame being at home. Thankfully, Buzz's teams seem to thrive off lowered expectations.
Quote from: 77ncaachamps on October 21, 2012, 09:29:53 AM
Chia,
I think the pre-season coaches poll that year had us at 5 or 6.
That's not really a contender ranking in my eyes.
It isn't in mine either. That's why writers / analyst shouldn't say we were contenders in the first place.