CBS Sports previews tomorrow's game

[Sir Lawrence]

http://www.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/gamecenter/preview/NCAAB_20081114_HOUBP@MARQET

Few first-year coaches face such high expectations as Buzz Williams does for No. 16 Marquette. But even fewer have an experienced squad to meet those expectations as the Golden Eagles open their season on Friday night at home against Houston Baptist.

Williams was the lone holdover from Marquette's coaching staff - serving his first season there as an assistant in 2007-08 - after Tom Crean left to rebuild problem-filled Indiana following nine seasons in Milwaukee. But the 36-year-old Williams, who was an assistant at Texas-Arlington, Northwestern State, Colorado State and Texas A&M before going 14-17 with New Orleans in 2006-07, appears to have been able to stamp his identity on this team.

"With Coach Crean, you never knew what you were going to get. Every time he came to the gym with something different," said senior guard Jerel McNeal, who led the team with 14.9 points and 2.2 steals. "With Coach Buzz, you're coming to the gym and getting the same thing every day."

McNeal, Dominic James (12.9 ppg) and Wesley Matthews (11.3) - all 1,000-point scorers - return for their senior seasons, trying to guide Marquette to its fourth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance. Last season, the Golden Eagles finally notched a first-round win for the first time since the 2003 Final Four, but a last-second overtime loss to Stanford left plenty of motivation for this season.

"I think you could tell from our faces after the game, that's just a bitter taste that I think none of us want to get back," said junior Lazar Hayward, who contributed 12.8 points per game while shooting 47.4 percent from 3-point range.

The Golden Eagles have a very deep backcourt, but are equally thin in the frontcourt, where Hayward and senior Dwight Burke must avoid foul trouble. Chris Otule, a 6-foot-10 freshman, and 6-7 sophomore Patrick Hazel likely will be in Williams' rotation while junior college transfer Joe Fulce recovers from a foot injury.

"We're little, we're short. ... When you come to our first game, that's not going to change," Williams said. "Our guards are going to have be extraordinary, good rebounders, because we don't have the size, a 6-11 guy, to get all the rebounds."

Marquette was picked to finish sixth in what many expect to be a brutally competitive Big East conference, which has seven of its 16 teams in the AP Top 25.

Houston Baptist is playing its first full schedule against Division I opponents, and Marquette is one of five opponents to make the 2008 NCAA tournament. The Huskies, who will eventually play in the Great West Conference starting in 2009-10, return six of their top seven scorers and boast 10 seniors on their roster.

Swingman Gordon Watt, who transfered from Purdue after his sophomore season, averaged team highs of 16.4 points and 8.0 rebounds for the Huskies last season. He had 26 points and nine rebounds in a 104-88 exhibition victory over East Texas Baptist on Saturday, while Baron Sauls contributed 25 points, seven steals and six assists, and Mario Flaherty added 17 points.

Many players on Houston Baptist are transfers from various Division I programs. Sauls played two seasons at Texas-Arlington, forward Emanuel Willis played for both Southern California and Auburn, and guard Justin Wilson started his collegiate career at Texas Southern before joining the Huskies.

This is the first-ever meeting between the teams.

[Gwaki]

"With Coach Crean, you never knew what you were going to get. Every time he came to the gym with something different," said senior guard Jerel McNeal, who led the team with 14.9 points and 2.2 steals. "With Coach Buzz, you're coming to the gym and getting the same thing every day."

+1 million

[RubyWiscy]

Um, don't mean to be picky here, but don't you mean "preview?"

[Sir Lawrence]

Um, don't mean to be picky here, but don't you mean "preview?"

Yup.  Edit in place.  Thanks.

[RubyWiscy]

Thought there was maybe a problem with the space-time continueum or something. Guess I've mee watching too much Star Trek.