4-31 from 3

[ATWizJr]

No they weren't. This team did not reach their ceiling.

[ATWizJr]

By definition, they did. Two years in a row.

[The Sultan]

No they weren't. This team did not reach their ceiling.

IDK. I come away from this season feeling that they won a bunch of good games early, but once the calendar turned to 2024 really didn't beat anyone notable. I guess you are ultimately right that they didn't reach their ceiling, but I don't think they fell that far short.

[The Equalizer]

This statistic is mind numbing...

https://x.com/john_fanta/status/1773913587347554468?s=61&t=gZBoYi_VDczg3gU8mzZwuA

From Fox Sports Research: Marquette went 4-of-31 on three-pointers tonight (12.9%), the 1,331st instance of a team attempting 30+ threes in a game this season in Division-I

Only one of those teams shot a lower percentage than Marquette (Furman, shot 12.1% vs Chattanooga Jan 6).

The two things that hurt us in the game against NC State were the two potential weaknesses identified at the end of last season when Shaka still had a chance to recruit from the portal:  lack of depth inside and limited 3-point scoring options.  Rather than bring in experienced players from the portal to shore up those potential issues, Shaka chose to use his five available scholarships on non-contributors to build his 2025 and 2026 roster.

In the era of instant multiple transfer eligibility, every available scholarship should have been used to help win THIS season.  And helping us win means you have additional options for those nights that your regulars are having an off night. 

This year's shot at a Final Four and National Championship was effectively lost when Shaka decided to stand pat with his 8 returning players without making any moves to improve the roster.

[The Sultan]

This year's shot at a Final Four and National Championship was effectively lost when Shaka decided to stand pat with his 8 returning players without making any moves to improve the roster.

If they would have shot their normal percentage from 3, they would have gone 10/31 and won the game easy. The problem wasn't the roster - the problem was the roster underperformed.

Furthermore, you have no idea what the impact of a transfer would have meant in all sorts of other ways.

When it comes down to it, I trust Shaka and Co. when it comes to building the team.

[WolfganghisKhan]

The two things that hurt us in the game against NC State were the two potential weaknesses identified at the end of last season when Shaka still had a chance to recruit from the portal:  lack of depth inside and limited 3-point scoring options.  Rather than bring in experienced players from the portal to shore up those potential issues, Shaka chose to use his five available scholarships on non-contributors to build his 2025 and 2026 roster.

In the era of instant multiple transfer eligibility, every available scholarship should have been used to help win THIS season.  And helping us win means you have additional options for those nights that your regulars are having an off night. 

This year's shot at a Final Four and National Championship was effectively lost when Shaka decided to stand pat with his 8 returning players without making any moves to improve the roster.

Go off king!!!!

[ATWizJr]

If they would have shot their normal percentage from 3, they would have gone 10/31 and won the game easy. The problem wasn't the roster - the problem was the roster underperformed.

Furthermore, you have no idea what the impact of a transfer would have meant in all sorts of other ways.

When it comes down to it, I trust Shaka and Co. when it comes to building the team.

When you have a chance to be Champs you should pull out all the stops and make any moves you need to to win NOW.  Sitting tight has resulted in where we are today. 

If not this year with an All American point guard, four returning starters and many role players then you'll be hard pressed to be in a better position to challenge for at least a final four in the foreseeable future. 

Don't like the portal?  Wasn't Kolek a transfer?

Building the team to win? When, if not this year?

[Its DJOver]

If you "pull out all the stops and make any moves you need to win now", do you still have "four returning starters and many role players"?

Shaka looked at the portal last offseason, Shaka pursued players in the portal last offseason, Shaka did not land any players from the portal last offseason. The last statement being true does not mean the first two aren't. 

[The Sultan]

When you have a chance to be Champs you should pull out all the stops and make any moves you need to to win NOW.  Sitting tight has resulted in where we are today. 

If not this year with an All American point guard, four returning starters and many role players then you'll be hard pressed to be in a better position to challenge for at least a final four in the foreseeable future. 

Don't like the portal?  Wasn't Kolek a transfer?

Building the team to win? When, if not this year?

Again, you have no idea if sitting tight resulted in where we are today.

This isn't fantasy college basketball where you can just add whomever and assume it will play out accordingly. It may have. It may not have.

But I trust Shaka to make that decision more than any Scoopers.

[ATWizJr]

Again, you have no idea if sitting tight resulted in where we are today.

This isn't fantasy college basketball where you can just add whomever and assume it will play out accordingly. It may have. It may not have.

But I trust Shaka to make that decision more than any Scoopers.

Two things are undeniable:  1. We sat tight . 2. We are where we are today.  You are denying reality.

[The Sultan]

Two things are undeniable:  1. We sat tight . 2. We are where we are today.  You are denying reality.

Correlation is not necessarily causation. You are engaging in poor logic.

[MU82]

 

Two things are undeniable:  1. We sat tight . 2. We are where we are today.  You are denying reality.

One thing is undeniable: By sitting tight, Shaka put Marquette in a favorable position to contend for a national title. His roster put is in a position similar to those of North Carolina, Arizona, Houston and Iowa State. Pretty good company. Either that, or just a bunch of abject failures, every single one.

But I'm glad that, back on March 1, you foresaw North Carolina State getting to the Final Four because of the amazing roster that Kevin Keatts put together. You knew it way before anybody else did, and you went on NCSUScoop to share your brilliant prediction. Congrats!

[NickelDimer]

I don't think there's anything wrong with criticizing Shaka not shoring up the roster through the portal. Once Omax was gone we had a big void in the starting lineup that pretty obviously wasn't going to be filled by Joplin.

[brewcity77]

O-Max was our best defender, yet our defense got better when he left. We're bemoaning shooting when we shot pretty much the same from three as last year.

Kansas' magic shooting fix was Nick Timberlake, how'd that work? Michigan loaded up with Olivier Nkamhoua, one of the best O-Max replacements in the portal, how did they finish?

There's no way to know how those moves would've worked here, but that's the point. We'll never know if those moves would make us better, the same, or worse.

As far as our next shot, it's next year. And while some Scoopers might say that's not possible, that's what we heard when Justin & Morsell left too. All we can do is trust the program and process.

[MU82]

O-Max was our best defender, yet our defense got better when he left. We're bemoaning shooting when we shot pretty much the same from three as last year.

Kansas' magic shooting fix was Nick Timberlake, how'd that work? Michigan loaded up with Olivier Nkamhoua, one of the best O-Max replacements in the portal, how did they finish?

There's no way to know how those moves would've worked here, but that's the point. We'll never know if those moves would make us better, the same, or worse.

As far as our next shot, it's next year. And while some Scoopers might say that's not possible, that's what we heard when Justin & Morsell left too. All we can do is trust the program and process.

Yep.

We had plenty of shooting. We just needed our shooters to do only a little better than 4-for-31. We go 8-for-31 - still a sucky .258 - and we almost surely win. I mean, Duke is one of the best shooting teams in the country, and they just went 2-for-16 until 1:10 remained in the game, after which they threw in three meaningless 3s. Sometimes the shots don't go in, dammit.

I have very few criticisms of Shaka, and the slight ones I have do not revolve around roster composition or playing time.

[NickelDimer]

If you don't think we matchup better with NC State if we had an Omax level starter in place of Joplin we can agree to disagree.

Now maybe that player wasn't available but that's a different conversation...

[MuMark]

The Bucks are one of the better 3 point shooting teams in the NBA........they are currently 5-27 and counting tonight......

Wide open look after wide open look......

[SaveOD238]

The Bucks are one of the vested 3 point shooting teams in the NBA........they are currently 5-27 and counting tonight......

Wide open look after wide open look......

And even 40% shooters miss 60% of the time.  Probability dictates that every once in a while those misses will all come in a row, like flipping tails 27 times out of 31.  It doesn't happen often, but it does happen.

It just happened to Marquette on the biggest stage.

(Also, I'm 100% in on this over-inflated balls theory)

[ATWizJr]

The Bucks are one of the vested 3 point shooting teams in the NBA........they are currently 5-27 and counting tonight......

Wide open look after wide open look......

. Meaningless since Lillard isn't playing. Currently 24%.

[MuMark]

https://x.com/seangrandepbp/status/1776478728844869804?s=61&t=6XPB8f4sAKmJIzxgMcsCjw

[Lennys Tap]

https://x.com/seangrandepbp/status/1776478728844869804?s=61&t=6XPB8f4sAKmJIzxgMcsCjw

Bird, Tatum, S Jones, etc. - Sam in some pretty good company!

[PointWarrior]

https://x.com/seangrandepbp/status/1776478728844869804?s=61&t=6XPB8f4sAKmJIzxgMcsCjw

Waiting for Herm's excellent report on this in the Hauser thread in the Superbar.

[wadesworld]

18 shots?! Markus rubbed off on him years later.

[TSmith34, Inc.]