Team preview: Marquette
COACH AND PROGRAM
In his eight seasons as coach of the Marquette Golden Eagles, Tom Crean has earned a reputation as a master motivator. Be it T-shirts with slogans, enormous banners featuring not-so-subtle reminders of the team's past shortcomings hung on the walls of the practice gym, critical newspaper clippings plastered all over the locker room, Crean has done it all, and usually to some success.
This off-season, though, he has only occasionally pulled one small arrow from his motivational quiver that nevertheless reverberates as loudly as anything throughout the halls of the Al McGuire Center -- 0-2. As in 0-2 in the last two NCAA Tournaments, despite boasting one of the nation's most precocious backcourts. Marquette's first-round loss to Alabama in 2005 could almost be excused because of the youth of star guards Dominic James, Jerel McNeal and Wesley Matthews. But last year they and their teammates took a huge step back in being embarrassed, 61-49, by Michigan State, a bitter pill to swallow considering all they had accomplished in the months before in the rough-and-tumble Big East. Ever since, they've been smarting over what might have been. So Crean has been cautious.
''If you focused just on that, you'd take away from the fact that these guys have won 44 games in the past two years as a very young basketball team,'' he said. ''I think that'd be the wrong message. Where the message comes in is that no one is bigger than the team, we need to have an incredible work ethic that is unparalleled from anything they've ever done, because it's time for us to take those next steps to have an opportunity to go above and beyond.''
Marquette Golden Eagles
Last Season 24-10 (.706)
Conference Record 10-6 (t-5th)
Starters Lost/Returning 0/5
Coach Tom Crean (Central Michigan '89)
Record At School 165-86 (8 years)
Career Record 165-86 (8 years)
RPI Last 5 years 7-71-94-40-27
What the Golden Eagles have accomplished in their two years in the Big East has been nothing short of remarkable. Most notably they've won 20 games, joining only Georgetown and Pittsburgh in winning 10 apiece the last two seasons. They ran off eight straight victories last season to recover from an 0-2 start in league play. They've defeated league heavyweights Con-necticut and Pittsburgh both on the road and at home and renewed rivalries with classic games against Louisville and Notre Dame. And this season figures to be much the same for the Golden Eagles, albeit with one important caveat: for the first time they're truly being considered as legitimate contenders for the regular-season title.
''Our success last season will fuel experiences for down the road,'' Crean said. ''There's a lot of different things I think we can hang our hat on.''
This season, Marquette might very well hang its hat on the four-guard lineup popularized a few seasons ago by Villanova. In James, McNeal and Matthews, it has three dynamic, athletic guards of varying size who can score, rebound and defend. Throw in sophomore transfer Maurice Acker, a blur with the basketball, and sophomore deadeye David Cubillan, and Crean has as many options in the backcourt as any coach in the country. It's a far cry from three years ago, when a center and a walk-on point guard wound up being his two most reliable ball handlers down the home stretch.
''What you envision is to put yourself into a position where you have multi-positional players with great versatility and a lot of energy, and you have to have a backcourt that can do a lot of different things,'' Crean said. ''It's definitely something we'll do. But that comes down to can you defend bigger people, can you rebound enough to hold your own? If that happens that means that Wesley Matthews and Jerel McNeal have to take their ability as two of the leading returning rebounding guards in this league and take that up a notch.''
Up front, Marquette is still thin but in much better shape than a season ago. Senior Ousmane Barro has shown steady improvement over his first three seasons and is now more than a ser-viceable big man in the Big East. Sophomore Lazar Hayward has had the benefit of a full off-season of development and should add some offensive punch. The addition of freshman forward Trevor Mbakwe is also huge. He's the most athletic and explosive big man Crean has landed at Marquette, and he'll be expected to make a positive impact the moment he steps onto the floor. Barro and Hayward especially figure to be eager to redeem themselves after the way they were manhandled by Michigan State's bigs last March.
''It's really more about us becoming more of a physical team, a better screening team,'' Crean said. ''We've got to score different ways in the post. Wesley, Jerel, those guys can post up and make plays. But we've got to see Lazar, Trevor and Ousmane really emerge, with Dwight Burke knocking on the door to be our top low-post threats.''
On the sideline, Crean will be working with a revamped coaching staff for the fifth straight season. Rejoining Crean after a five-season stint as head coach at Ball State is Tim Buckley. Buzz Williams, who spent last season as head coach at New Orleans, also joined the staff. The lone holdover is Bennie Seltzer, who is entering just his second season at Marquette. The turn-over, though wide-ranging, figures to be a good thing in Crean's eyes.
''You add experience, recruiters and the diversification of different parts of the country,'' he said. ''Change is going to be painful at times for a new player coming in or when a staff person leaves, but there's always a payoff to that change if you do it right. There's a lot of different opinions and there's a work ethic. The thing that's best for me is there's a mentality of, 'What can we do to make the program better?' ''
In the short term and for the long haul, Marquette is in great hands with Crean. A tireless worker and promoter, he has returned what was in the late 1990s a moribund program to the na-tional stage. The endless April rumors regarding his job status aside, he's done things by and large the right way at Marquette and figures to remain there for the long haul. But as wide as his view has to be as the caretaker of a storied program, he's also focused on the here and now -- most notably winning the Big East and getting back into the win column in the NCAA Tourna-ment.
PLAYERS
PG-DOMINIC JAMES (5-11, 185 lbs., JR, #1, 14.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 4.9 apg, 33.2 mpg, .384 FG, .272 3PT, .651 FT, Richmond HS/Richmond, Ind.). Had things gone according to plan, last season would have been James' swan song at Marquette, and he would now be plying his trade in the NBA. But a season that began with so much promise ended with myriad questions about James' game -- most notably, can he shoot with any consistency and can he run a team efficiently at the point?
He had problems in both areas as a freshman, but considering his youth that was to be expected. What caught observers off-guard, though, was the freakish athleticism that James brought to the table. There just aren't that many 5-11 players in the world with 40-plus-inch vertical leaps who wind up leading their team in dunks.
It was James' physical tools that would have made him a likely NBA first-round pick had he come out as a freshman after he breezed to Big East Freshman-of-the-Year honors. James re-turned for a sophomore season that featured some electrifying performances -- a 25-point, seven-assist outing in an upset of Duke; a 22-point game in a win at Valparaiso that featured James scoring the Golden Eagles' last 18 points over the final 6:23; a dominating second-half performance in a road win at Louisville; and a 23-point game in a dramatic win at Pittsburgh that he capped with a pair of cold-blooded free throws in the final second of overtime.
But even with all that, James seemed to regress. He relied more on his suspect jump shot than he did as a freshman, perhaps in a misguided attempt to show NBA scouts he could be suc-cessful from the perimeter. He didn't attack the basket as much, either, and at times seemed content to pound the air out of the basketball in the half-court rather than push it as Crean pre-ferred. James' point-guard mentality seemed to disappear over the final third of the season, his shooting continued to suffer and, ultimately, so did his NBA prospects.
''It was totally unexpected, the year that I had as a freshman. I accomplished a lot. I know I got caught up in [the NBA talk] a little too much,'' James said. ''I listened to people that I had never listened to before, and most of those people were once my critics.''
Those same critics no doubt shook their heads when, despite his stock being at its lowest in his two years at Marquette, James nevertheless declared himself eligible for the draft. He didn't hire an agent -- a wise move considering he was only invited to the pre-draft camp after a number of other initial invitees declined to attend. He failed to impress there, and after being advised he would be no better than a late second-round pick, James bit the bullet and returned to the Golden Eagles to begin preparing for what he hopes will be a resurgent season for himself and Marquette.
''Right now I'm coming back with the mentality of just winning,'' he said. ''I just feel like I've got to have winning as a mind set, and that'll take care of everything. I'm putting the focus on my teammates and getting wins.''
James looked solid in off-season workouts and appeared to be getting back to his old self in early September during the Golden Eagles' four-exhibition-game swing to Vancouver when he averaged a team-best 17.8 points and 6.5 assists while committing just six turnovers. Just as promising was his accuracy shooting the basketball -- 49 percent overall, 38.9 percent from three-point range and 77.8 percent from the free-throw line, perhaps a byproduct of his tweaking of his form by not jumping so high on each shot. Whatever the case, the Golden Eagles are counting on James putting up similar numbers once the games begin counting.
''Dominic has got to stay focused on the things that will separate him as a guard and the things that will separate us as a team,'' Crean said. ''And if he does those things, every dream and goal he has for the next level, I think, can be realized. But it's a matter of coming down and being incredibly efficient, changing speeds, never getting away from using that explosiveness that I think separates him as a guard.''
SG-JEREL McNEAL (6-3, 200 lbs., JR, #22, 14.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 3.8 apg, 30.2 mpg, .417 FG, .313 3PT, .682 FT, Hillcrest HS/Chicago). James got the media's love a season ago. McNeal got it from those that count most to him -- his teammates -- as they voted him, not James, the Golden Eagles' MVP. And many of those who watched Marquette on a regular basis came to the same conclusion.
McNeal became one of the Big East's most well-rounded players as a sophomore, setting a career high with a 25-point game, tying a career high with a 12-rebound outing and setting an-other career high with a 10-assist game, all the while playing the trademark tenacious defense that helped him become just the fifth guard in Big East history to win the league's defensive player-of-the-year award. All told, he wound up as one of only four Division I players to average at least 14.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game.
How it was that McNeal failed to garner first team All-Big East honors was something of a mystery.
''I definitely feel like I got shafted a little bit, being the defensive player of the year and averaging nearly 14 points per game, not to mention being on one of the best teams in the Big East,'' McNeal said. ''But it's not something I'm going to let bother me. It just adds more fuel to the fire. This year I'm going to leave no doubt about it, that I'm one of the top players in the confer-ence.''
McNeal's value to the Golden Eagles was underscored late in the season when he suffered a broken bone in his thumb and missed their final four games. They managed to beat Pittsburgh in the regular-season finale and St. John's in the Big East Tournament opener, but fell apart in their final two games without their emotional leader helping set the tone.
McNeal is healed and he's coming off an invitation to USA Basketball's Pan Am Games tryouts that served as a salute to his standing. He does need to tighten up on his ball handling -- he committed a team-high 118 turnovers last season -- as well as his perimeter shooting because Crean has vowed to give him some time at the point this year. Assuming that all goes according to plan, there's no reason to think he won't get his due this time around.
''Once he builds his decision making up a few more notches, once his outside jump shot becomes more consistent, and once his ability to run the floor at an even higher level grows, you won't see a guy that's underrated,'' Crean said. ''I think then he'll be one of those players that can receive that national acclaim that we here feel he deserves.''
SF-WESLEY MATTHEWS (6-5, 215 lbs., JR, #23, 12.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.2 apg, 31.2 mpg, .438 FG, .288 3PT, .770 FT, Madison Memorial HS/Madison, Wis.). Matthews was a huge re-cruiting coup for Crean, who snatched up the state's 2005 Mr. Basketball out of the University of Wisconsin's backyard. Progress has been slow but steady for Matthews ever since. First, his development was stunted by a broken foot that cost him eight games in his freshman season. Add in Crean's need for him to play a number of different positions -- including point guard and power forward at times -- and it's clear Matthews has seen plenty in just two seasons.
The addition of more backcourt help should free Matthews this season to do what he does best -- attack the basket, defend and rebound. Offensively he excels at getting to the free-throw line (team-high 183 attempts last year), something he should do at an even higher rate this season assuming he sticks to his battle plan.
''Instead of fading off to the side, getting caught up in trying to do everything, [just] attack,'' Matthews said. ''That's what I try to do in practice, that's what I try to do in pickup games, just the workouts that I do myself. Just keep building that confidence and know that I can take my man when I want.''
Crean will also be expecting improvement on the boards by Matthews, a challenge that figures to come to fruition considering how hard he worked throughout an off-season that, like McNeal, included an invitation to the Pan Am Games trials.
''Going into year nine, when you take April to the end of the summer, I have not been around a player here that has had the obsessiveness of getting better and working on his game so much like Wesley has done,'' Crean said. ''He's deferred too much to others in the past. It's never been a situation where we've wanted him to do that. We see tremendous strengths in him. He's done a great job of improving his weaknesses, and we need him to have one of those breakthrough, complete seasons where he sees himself as the aggressor.''
PF-DAN FITZGERALD (6-9, 220 lbs., SR, #5, 7.4 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 21.7 mpg, .483 FG, .423 3PT, .762 FT, St. Thomas HS/St. Paul, Minn.). It was 2004 when Crean got his first taste of Fitzgerald in the Bradley Center; as a freshman at Tulane he scored a then-career high 16 points and knocked down four threes against Marquette. Fast-forward nearly four seasons and Fitz-gerald is still knocking them down on the Golden Eagles' court, except this time he's on the other side and doing it at a much higher rate.
Possessing the perimeter shot and offensive versatility Crean prefers at power forward, Fitzgerald sank a team-high 52 threes as a part-time starter, and four times knocked down four threes in a game. He also finished last season strong, posting back-to-back 20-point outings in the first two rounds of the Big East Tournament. Crean will be counting on similar production this season from Fitzgerald, but on a more consistent basis.
''He's got to be a guy now, playing his fifth year of college basketball, that if there's a low, he can get right back to it, and not allow inconsistencies to come from lack of confidence or lack of focus,'' Crean said. ''He's got great want-to and really good stick-to-itiveness. But now he's got to be able to bounce back a little bit quicker. I think the less said, the better. He sees himself as a serious, significant contributor on this team.''
C-OUSMANE BARRO (6-10, 235 lbs., SR, #41, 8.1 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 1.0 bpg, 27.0 mpg, .599 FG, .615 FT, Julian HS/Chicago and Dakar, Senegal). To say Barro was a project when he arrived at Marquette in the fall of 2004 was an understatement. He was only a few years removed from arriving in the U.S., didn't have a great command of the English language and hadn't even played high school basketball. But look at him now.
''He's an excellent young man who's made great strides academically,'' Crean said. ''If you said when he got here that he'd be in the position he's in academically right now to graduate in four years, there weren't a lot of people buying that stock. He's done an excellent job that way.''
After two seasons of slow but steady progress on the court, Barro last year rounded out into Marquette's best big man. He's unorthodox and doesn't possess a traditional back-to-the-basket game, but he makes up for those shortcomings with an ability to run the floor like a gazelle and creates havoc with his long wingspan.
Last season he nearly doubled his career scoring average, nearly tripled his career rebounding average, and also posted his first three double-doubles. But for all that improvement, Barro petered out down the stretch when the Golden Eagles needed him most. The energy he provided earlier in the season was replaced by needless early fouls, thus limiting his effectiveness. His final game was his most disappointing -- four fouls, two rebounds and one point in just 17 minutes in Marquette's first-round loss in the NCAAs to Michigan State.
He'll need to rebound -- both literally and figuratively -- this season for the Golden Eagles to realize their full potential. ''He had an excellent probably three-fifths of a season here. When we were really playing well he was playing well,'' Crean said. ''I've always likened him to a warrior. We didn't see that as much at the end of the year, and that's got to pick back up because that's a crucial, crucial spot for us. Is he good enough in the Big East? Absolutely. But is it where it's got to be for us to take that next step? That's what he's got to determine.''
F-LAZAR HAYWARD (6-6, 225 lbs., SO, #32, 6.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 16.3 mpg, .428 FG, .208 3PT, .667 FT, Notre Dame Prep/Fitchburg, Mass. and Buffalo, N.Y.). Hayward arrived at Mar-quette with plenty of billing but quickly fell behind the curve when he missed a month's worth of preparation time leading up to the start of practice when the NCAA began an investigation into his high school transcripts. He was cleared by the open of the regular season, but he never really seemed to catch up.
Hayward did put up career highs of 18 points and eight rebounds against Villanova and DePaul, respectively, but much more will be expected of him this season. He was noticeably bigger and stronger in off-season workouts, pushing around much bigger teammates in the post, and he remains a player who has the knack for grabbing loose balls and getting fouled in the lane.
''He's got to keep building his athleticism,'' Crean said. ''Even watching him in practice, he's still not getting by people the way that he should yet. But when it comes to strength, tough-ness, just a fighter's mentality, he's got that.'' Hayward was billed as a top-notch shooter from three-point range as well, but struggled mightily all season. He knocked down only 10, and went nearly two months between makes at one point. Again, those numbers must improve greatly.
''I think some of it was a rush, I think some of it was shooting the ball not as consistently; his release point was different,'' Crean said. ''He just needs that consistency of knocking it down. Using his legs. All those things are crucial for him.''
G-DAVID CUBILLAN (6-0, 175 lbs., SO, #10, 5.5 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 1.6 apg, 21.2 mpg, .379 FG, .425 3PT, 763 FT, St. Benedict's Prep/Newark, N.J. and Maracaibo, Venezuela). Cubillan's three-point shooting and mental toughness were a revelation on a team that lacked both for stretches last season. Although his season averages weren't overly impressive, his three-point percentage led the Golden Eagles and his 48 threes were second only to Fitzgerald's 52. His three three-pointers in the first half of Marquette's NCAA Tournament loss to Michigan State helped prevent what was an embarrassing first-half performance become even worse.
Cubillan spent part of the summer playing for the Venezuelan national team and actually started at one point before he was ultimately replaced before the team's participation in the FIBA Americas Championship in Las Vegas. It was an experience that should help his overall game.
''Some of the subtleties of the game, like staying committed to the spacing, staying in a spot, attacking and getting to the rim, he made improvements in the spring, but now we've got to see that in the games,'' Crean said. ''Have more of a take-charge attitude. Direct people. He's one of the best outside shooters in the league. At the same time, we don't want to wear him out in the fall because he has played a lot of basketball.''
The challenge for Cubillan this year will to become more than just a designated shooter off the bench.
''I think really being able to get by people, especially without a ball screen. Finishing at the rim,'' Crean said. ''He's so strong you want to get him fouled, you want to get him in the post. Really being able to run a club. This should be a team that, more often than not, we can have a three-point guard mentality on the floor.''
G-MAURICE ACKER (5-8, 165 lbs., SO, #2, 31.7 mpg, 9.2 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 4.6 apg, .326 FG, .796 FT, in 2005-06, Hillcrest HS/Chicago and Ball State University). The Mid-American Conference freshman of the year two seasons ago at Ball State transferred to Marquette after then-coach Tim Buckley was fired. Now, after having served out his red-shirt year, Buckley is at Marquette as an assistant and Acker remains best friends with McNeal, his running buddy since before their days as teammates at Hillcrest High School. Talk about your comfort zones.
Acker gives Crean an added weapon in the backcourt with his ability to push the ball, break the press and also press defensively. Already a proven floor leader, he'll also allow Crean to spell James at the point and at times be able to move either one to shooting guard in order to give the opposition different looks.
''The main concerns I have with him are the ability to do it defensively at a good level, and the ability to direct and command his teammates to be in the right place,'' Crean said. ''We had a play in one of our scrimmages in the summer and we went back and took a look at the film. He took the length of the floor in 2.9 seconds from the time of the catch to the layup. It was amaz-ing. Then he did it again in about 4.0 seconds. That's the kind of stuff that we've got to have. He can shoot the ball; he's made great improvements. He gives us a lot of flexibility. We're not going to skip a beat when he's in there.''
F-TREVOR MBAKWE (6-7, 240 lbs., FR, #33, 21.6 ppg, 12.7 rpg, 4.5 bpg, St. Bernard's Prep/St. Paul, Minn.). One of the knocks on Crean during his tenure at Marquette has been an inability to land talented high school big men. If all goes according to plan, Mbakwe could help change that perception by the end of his freshman season. Never before has Crean had such an explosive and athletic post player as he'll have in Mbakwe, an all-state player in Minnesota the last few seasons. The size-18 feet and pigeon-toed gait catch your eye at first, but once the ball is tipped, it's the strong hands, blocked shots and big dunks that Mbakwe contributes on a regular basis that make him stand out from the crowd.
His post game remains a work in progress, but he brings so many other tools to the table that it'll be a mild upset if he's not playing more than 20 minutes per game once the Big East schedule begins.
''He really understands what he's doing down low,'' Crean said. ''He'll develop some moves and counter moves, but he's got an excellent feel for using contact. He can spin very well. He tries to dunk everything. I love his mentality. It's just going to be a matter of when, not if, with him. I'd be shocked if he weren't in that playing group right off the bat and challenging for serious minutes and a starting position as time goes on.''
Mbakwe didn't arrive at Marquette until just before the start of the fall semester because he needed to complete a summer course in St. Paul, so it's likely he'll be eased in initially. Don't expect too big a learning curve, however.
''It's going to be a little like Lazar's situation,'' Crean said. ''There's going to be that sense of being behind with everything, the whole feel and comfort level. But when it comes to being around that rim and having a nose for rebounding the ball and scoring and doing those things, he's not behind there. He hasn't played against great college competition yet, so we'll see how that goes. But we've got really strong expectations for him.''
It's Crean's preference to utilize perimeter shooters like Fitzgerald at power forward in order to create spacing, but because he lacks a consistent jumper at this point, Mbakwe's initial min-utes will probably come in relief of Barro at center. But against teams with bigger frontcourts like Georgetown and Louisville, Mbakwe will be able to slide into the power forward spot and team with Barro to give the Golden Eagles a fairly imposing front line.
F-DWIGHT BURKE (6-8, 250 lbs., JR, #12, 8.9 mpg, 0.8 ppg, 1.8 rpg, .323 FG, .267 FT, St. Benedict's Prep/Newark, N.J. and Brooklyn, N.Y.). It has been slow going thus far for Burke, who originally committed to East Carolina but wound up at Marquette in the spring of 2005 after Pirates coach Bill Herrion was fired.
Burke passes the eyeball test without question, boasting a frame that allows him to pass for an NFL tight end at first glance. He's lost 20 pounds since last season, and is as lean and muscu-lar as he's been at Marquette. But so far Burke's been unable to translate that mass to the basketball court enough to make him more than a situational substitute. He can take up space, defend some and rebounds OK but is a non-entity offensively and atrocious at the free-throw line, which nails him to the bench by default at the end of any close game.
Burke has had his moments, though. His most notable performance to date came last Jan. 10 when he set career highs with five points and seven rebounds in 23 minutes of a 73-69 victory at Connecticut, helping kick-start an eight-game winning streak in Big East play for Marquette. A few more games like that would be welcomed by the Golden Eagles, who are still searching for able bodies in the paint.
''Tim [Buckley's] got a sign that he's putting up in his office that says, 'Know your role. Do your job.' I think that really sums up Dwight,'' Crean said. ''His full mind set and focus has got to be delved into the toughness of rebounding, the toughness of defending, getting people open. Just that spirit. He's an energizer. He's done some good things, but it's got to be more consis-tent. With two new freshmen in here that want to play and contribute, I think that'll speed that up. We've already seen some of that in practice.''
F-LAWRENCE ''TREND'' BLACKLEDGE (6-8, 185 lbs., SR, #21, 1.7 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 6.4 mpg, 452 FG, .455 FT, Carbondale HS/Carbondale, Ill. and Southwestern Illinois College). Crean came across Blackledge by happenstance last summer; he was actually recruiting Lance Stemler when Blackledge caught his eye with his athleticism and a number of impressive dunks. So when Stemler ultimately committed to Indiana, Crean turned his attention to Blackledge, who to that point had only attracted serious Division I interest from Duquesne.
Blackledge arrived at Marquette last year barely weighing 160 pounds, and it took him some time to catch up in terms of strength and the physicality of Division I play. When he did, he showed he could impact a game in small doses by running the floor and providing defense on the wing. But his work ethic and grades got him into Crean's doghouse not long into the Big East season, and ultimately he was declared academically ineligible.
But Blackledge paid his penance in the classroom over the summer and enters this season in good academic standing. Once again, his length and athleticism could earn him some minutes on the wing.
''He doesn't have the strength, necessarily, to play the four or the three, but that's what he's got to be,'' Crean said. ''He's a guy that's very situational for us right now, somebody that can go in and change the tempo of the game with his speed. A phenomenal leaper; the guys just love throwing him alley-oops because he can catch a bad pass and do something exciting with it. He's 6-8 and he's long, so let's see where that takes him.''
G-SCOTT CHRISTOPHERSON (6-3, 200 lbs., FR, #0, 22.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 4.0 apg, La Crosse Aquinas HS/La Crosse, Wis.). Though he was chosen Wisconsin's Co-Mr. Basketball as a senior along with University of Wisconsin recruit Keaton Nankivil, Christopherson caught the eye of Crean long before. He committed to Marquette midway through his sophomore season, in fact, and has done nothing but improve ever since.
Christopherson played both point and shooting guard in leading Aquinas to a 26-1 record and the Division 3 state championship game, and he was virtually unstoppable on offense. He was able to get to the basket at will and finish thanks in large part to a 33-inch vertical leap but was just as comfortable stepping beyond the arc, where he knocked down 58 three-pointers with a single-game high of six. The ability to make open shots is undoubtedly going to be intriguing to Marquette, which boasts just three reliable gunners in Fitzgerald, Cubillan and Acker.
''He's got an excellent stroke,'' Crean said. ''That, I think, will get him on that floor. When our guys kick the ball to him, there's a real good opportunity for them to have an assist. He's also more athletic than people think.''
But how well Christopherson defends is what will ultimately determine whether he's able to break into the playing group in the backcourt. There's little doubt he'll need to add both strength and bulk before he's able to handle more meaningful minutes in Big East play.
F-PAT HAZEL (6-7, 220 lbs., FR, #4, 11.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg, Blair Academy/Blairstown, N.J. and Queens, N.Y.). Crean is always on the lookout for toughness, and that's one of the traits he saw almost immediately in Hazel, whose father, Lance, just so happens to be a corrections officer at the infamous Rikers Island jail in New York.
Affectionately referred to as a ''garbage guy'' by his coach at Blair Academy, Joe Mantegna, Hazel came up with nearly all his points and rebounds last season with hustle and heart. That's not to say he lacks the physical traits or athletic ability to become successful -- he boasts a 7-4 wingspan and hands that Crean calls the biggest he's ever seen on a player he's coached -- but at this point Hazel's game is going to need some refining before he's able to compete for serious minutes.
''Right now when we see Pat, we need to see that energy,'' Crean said. ''We've got to see a guy who's trying to climb on the rim. What I was really impressed with when we were recruiting him was his second and third efforts. He can shoot the ball better than I thought he could at this point. He needs to be somebody that's running the floor, creating havoc defensively, getting to the glass, putting pressure on people. We're not going to try to speed that up for him, but I think his time is definitely going to come.''
BLUE RIBBON ANALYSIS
BACKCOURT: A
BENCH/DEPTH: B+
FRONTCOURT: B-
INTANGIBLES: B+
Looking at the big picture, Marquette enters the season facing the highest expectations since its magical Final Four run of 2002-03. The good news for the Golden Eagles is this team is heavy on talent and experience and even deeper than the one led by Dwyane Wade.
It might not boast a transcendent talent like Wade -- although James might make argue that point -- or a dominant post scorer like Robert Jackson, but the rest of the pieces are in place. Can the Golden Eagles as they're currently constructed make another Final Four run?
That might be pushing it a bit, especially considering their limitations in the lane and shooting the basketball. But with so much star power and guard play, there's no reason to think this squad can't finally break out and make some noise come March.
"In the short term and for the long haul, Marquette is in great hands with Crean. A tireless worker and promoter, he has returned what was in the late 1990s a moribund program to the national stage. The endless April rumors regarding his job status aside, he's done things by and large the right way at Marquette and figures to remain there for the long haul. But as wide as his view has to be as the caretaker of a storied program, he's also focused on the here and now -- most notably winning the Big East and getting back into the win column in the NCAA Tournament."
OK Crean blasters... take up arms and rip the writer to shreds. He obviously doesn't know anything.
''Right now I'm coming back with the mentality of just winning,'' he said. ''I just feel like I've got to have winning as a mind set, and that'll take care of everything. I'm putting the focus on my teammates and getting wins.''
Love this quote. I think James is gonna be a beast this year.
FYI, Rosiak is the writer.
Quote from: Eye on October 31, 2007, 03:48:07 PM
FYI, Rosiak is the writer.
Funny, until this post about Rosiak being the writer I was thinking this writer REALLY knows this club. Being that it was Rosiak it makes sense.
This is an excellent analysis.
Rosiak also did the DePaul preview for Blue Ribbon. Didn't notice his name on any other previews, but am only halfway through the book at this point.