[Cracked Sidewalks] Bulls on Parade

[CrackedSidewalksSays]

Bulls on Parade

They rally round tha family! With a pocket full of shells
They rally round tha family! With a pocket full of shells

Bulls on parade

Come wit it now!
Come wit it now!

Know what? USF coach Stan Heath just might invoke the passion of Rage Against the Machine on Tuesday night when his struggling Bulls (10-10, 1-6) take on the nationally ranked Marquette Golden Eagles (14-4, 4-3).

The Bulls enter Tuesday's contest mired in a six game conference losing streak. How bad has it been for USF since beating Rutgers to open Big East play? Well, the Bulls lost these six games by an average of fourteen points -- with each loss coming in double digits.

Come wit it now!
Come wit it now!

Despite their record the Bulls do have talent, particularly explosive big man Kentrell Gransberry. The 6''9, 270 pound senior averages a double-double (17 and 11) and has scored 20 or more points in seven of his last eight outings. The trigger man for the Bulls is precocious freshman point guard Dominique Jones. The youngster plays 34 minutes per game, is second on the team in scoring at 15ppg, hits 41% from deep, and carries an impressive A/TO ratio of nearly 1.5/1.

After a much-needed win over DePaul this weekend, Dominic James and crew should be chomping at the bit to hit the floor again. James keyed MU's dominating second half surge on Saturday to help end the modest two-game win streak. Despite the win, concerns remain over the disappearance of any reasonable post options and the Golden Eagles' inability to control the backboard in conference play. Still, the Golden Eagles are 11-0 at home and with the defensive pressure Crean's crew can apply against a young backcourt ...... advantage Golden Eagles.

Two key matchups to watch:

• Turnovers. The Bulls play to a negative turnover margin, while MU averages nearly four more take-aways than turnovers. The Golden Eagles lead the Big East in steals per game, but the Bulls don't help themselves much defensively -- they are last in the Big East in thefts.
  
• Three-point shooting. Marquette leads the Big East in 3-point field goald percentage defense (30%). USF is one of the better three-point shooting teams in the league, connecting on 36% from deep.

If the Bulls can protect the basketball and shoot well from deep, MU could be in for a tougher fight than many expect.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7pm CST. The game will be broadcast on ESPN Full Court, channel 694 on Directv.

Media Updates

• GoMarquette.com game preview
• USF official game preview
• The Associated Press game preview
• Marquette Hoops game preview
• Rosiak blogs his preview on tonight's game.
• Good article by Rosiak on MU's struggles on the baseline.
  

Update: IWB's SportsBubbler.com has a great preview and video footage of a pre-game press conference.

http://www.crackedsidewalks.com/2008/01/bulls-on-parade.html