[Rosiak's Blog] Game 22: DePaul

[ToddRosiakSays]

Game 22: DePaul


Feb. 3, 2009 10:10 a.m.  




The Marquette Golden Eagles head into Allstate Arena tonight alone atop the Big East standings at 8-0, and sporting an 11-game winning streak.

Think that won't be incentive enough for rival DePaul to be ready to knock them off their perch?

Then consider what the Blue Demons (8-14, 0-9) were able to do in the second half of the teams' last meeting on Jan. 24, which MU won, 79-70.

They shot 46.2%, compared to the Golden Eagles' 32.0%, got 13 points from Dar Tucker, and generally turned what appeared to be a runaway game at halftime into a competitive affair the rest of the way. And that was even with star big man Mac Koshwal playing an average game (14 points, nine rebounds).

It was arguably the worst half of basketball MU has played through eight Big East games thus far, and the sort of prolonged letdown it can't afford tonight if it wants to lengthen its lead in the league standings.

"I’d say one of them. It’s one that sticks out in my mind right away, along with a couple stretches against Providence," said Wesley Matthews on Monday. "Our pace just slowed up. We stopped attacking, stopped being aggressive, sharing the ball. We stopped doing what we do the best, which is what got us in position to be in the lead."

Just like on Jan. 24, MU's main focus will have to be on shutting down the 6-foot-10 Koshwal and 6-5 Tucker.

Koshwal comes in averaging 13.6 points and 10.0 rebounds and Tucker 18.5 and 5.3 while also knocking down a team-high 40 three-pointers.

Another player the Golden Eagles need to slow down is guard Will Walker, who scored 17 points and hit 4 of 7 threes in the teams' first meeting.

"They’re so talented," said Matthews. "They’re talented, they at home, they played us tough at our place a week and half ago, so that’s fresh in their minds. They’re trying to get a win, it’s a rivalry game. It’s the Big East. It’s not what their record says as a team. We know that."

Here are DePaul's season stats to date.

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