Higher Expectations for Buzz/Team?

[MarquetteNation]

Back in October, expectations were low for Buzz and his crew.  Most fans would have been thrilled to see the Golden Eagles finish .500 in the Big East.  Now that the team essentially "controls its own destiny,"  how much higher are expectations?   

Given what we now know about both our strengths and weaknesses, I'd personally be disappointed with anything less than a 4-3 finish (10-8 overall in the BE). Have I gotten too greedy?   

[PGsHeroes32]

I agree anything short of that and i will be very disappointed. I really want a 5-2 finish to feel good about making the tourney.

[Daniel]

Let's win the next one!

[HoopsMalone]

I know that this is a little unrealistic, but I would not be happy with anything less than 6-1.

Losing to USF, Pitt, Loserville, or ND would really be disappointing on our home court.  I know a three point shooting team is going to have a bad night, but that doesn't mean I can't settle my expectation at 2-2 or 3-1 in these evenly matched home games.  Home court should be the difference in each of the four games.  We have all of our bad karma out of our system.


Then, if we go 1-2 on the road I would not be happy.  We cannot lose to both SHU and Cincy, but rather only one.  I expect 2-1 on the road in bringing us to 6-1.

Probably wishful thinking, especially with Otule not coming back.  I still think that 6-1 is doable the way that the new Big Three have shown that they can consistently play.

[GOMU1104]

I know that this is a little unrealistic, but I would not be happy with anything less than 6-1.

Losing to USF, Pitt, Loserville, or ND would really be disappointing on our home court.  I know a three point shooting team is going to have a bad night, but that doesn't mean I can't settle my expectation at 2-2 or 3-1 in these evenly matched home games.  Home court should be the difference in each of the four games.  We have all of our bad karma out of our system.


Then, if we go 1-2 on the road I would not be happy.  We cannot lose to both SHU and Cincy, but rather only one.  I expect 2-1 on the road in bringing us to 6-1.

Probably wishful thinking, especially with Otule not coming back.  I still think that 6-1 is doable the way that the new Big Three have shown that they can consistently play.

Wow...reign it in a bit. Buzz says it ad nauseum, but hes 100% right...We have negative margin for error. To say you would be disappointed with anything less than 6-1, and that losses to USF, Pitt, UL, and ND would be really disappointing...wow.  All of those teams can give us problems, and all of them will likely be very close games.

You have set the bar very high. Like the optimism, but you have to be realistic.

[chapman]

We have four home games, none against easy teams, but they're at home.  You can have an off night and a bad matchup on top of it and drop one.  Going 2-2 or worse at home is inexcusable for a good team that should be able to defend its home court...and forget the perpetual underdogs, no margin of error garbage, this is a good team.  The road is always tough, particularly when the opponents are not pushovers.  They aren't good teams, and at this point it's hard to believe any of them are going to the make NCAAs (losses are piling up for SHU and Cincy, plus Cincy's schedule is brutal).  A good team has to be able to steal one of those, and should hopefully get two.  Losing all three is simply something a good team does not do.  Really, we're good enough that the expectation should be 5-2.  Give one hiccup due to an off-night or just not being able to overcome our weaknesses and 4-3 is excusable, but no worse than that.

[79Warrior]

I know that this is a little unrealistic, but I would not be happy with anything less than 6-1.

Losing to USF, Pitt, Loserville, or ND would really be disappointing on our home court.  I know a three point shooting team is going to have a bad night, but that doesn't mean I can't settle my expectation at 2-2 or 3-1 in these evenly matched home games.  Home court should be the difference in each of the four games.  We have all of our bad karma out of our system.


Then, if we go 1-2 on the road I would not be happy.  We cannot lose to both SHU and Cincy, but rather only one.  I expect 2-1 on the road in bringing us to 6-1.

Probably wishful thinking, especially with Otule not coming back.  I still think that 6-1 is doable the way that the new Big Three have shown that they can consistently play.

you are right, wishfull thinking.

[HoopsMalone]

Wow...reign it in a bit. Buzz says it ad nauseum, but hes 100% right...We have negative margin for error. To say you would be disappointed with anything less than 6-1, and that losses to USF, Pitt, UL, and ND would be really disappointing...wow.  All of those teams can give us problems, and all of them will likely be very close games.

You have set the bar very high. Like the optimism, but you have to be realistic.

You are right.  I think 2-1 is realistic for our three road games, but 4-0 is a little bit of a reach for the home games.  

I am confident that we are too quick for ND, but the other three will be very tough.  Three games with teams that are equal and we are at home.  That is my logic.  I can't see the veterans on this team having any brain farts, especially with DePaul in their memories.  If I was really betting money, I would put it on 3-1 in the home games to be honest, but I don't think that 4-0 is completely out of the question.  This team really plays well together, Lazar's shot is going in, and DJO is continuing to improve.

[79Warrior]

i disagree, chappy. they need to run the table. Big Len Elmore said so.

So you think an 11-7 team from the BE would not get in?  I would disagree completely

[tower912]

naughty troll with all of the double entrendre names on ignore in whatever incarnation. 

[reinko]

If MU finishes the season 6-1 and one BET win, we will be 6 seed, and ranked in the top 25.

[bilsu]

I see 2-2 at home and 2-1 on the road, which results in a 10-8 finish. I think we beat Notre Dame and either south Florida or Pitt. My gut says we beat Pitt after losing to South Florida. We could win all the games, if we shoot well from three, but we could lose all the games if go in a shooting slump. I happy with 4-3 and a first round win in Big East tournament.

[MarquetteNation]

Is anything less than a tourney bid (again, knowing what we know now- and presumably what needs to get done for that to happen) going to be a disappointment for this team?

My thoughts are no (as long as we have a deep run in the NIT as a consolation).  After all, it would be very hard for me to be upset if we end up 10-8 in the BE and not make the tourney.  

My main goal at the beginning of this season was to remain competitive.  I truly believe that an absolutely terrible season (especially early in Buzz's tenure) could send have sent the program reeling into a DePaul-like state.  IMO, by even putting ourselves in a position to earn a bid this season will prove to have been incredibly important to remaining a competitive program in the BE for years to come.  Remember when recruits used to say they liked Buzz- but they didn't know enough about him as a head coach.  Well, thanks to this team's early success/hard work- people now know both what Buzz is about and can assume that Marquette will remain in the top half of the league (see DJ Newbill's comments).  If, for that reason alone, it will be very tough to call this season a disappointment (aside from a debacle these last 7 games).

[ATWizJr]

5-2 is a reasonable expectation and would get us in the tourney at 11-7.  No guarantee, especially if we sustain a significant injury, but do-able.

[HoopsMalone]

I agree with one of the posts above regarding 'competitiveness' as kind of what makes or breaks us this season.  All the pundits repeat the talking point about how close our losses have been and now we have a good shot at the tourney with all of these home games coming up

[Daniel]

Let's win the next one.

[PGsHeroes32]

Yeah lets just start taking things 1 game at a time and see how well we do. I cant wait for saturday.

[GOMU1104]

Fellas...we lost to DePaul.  How can you "expect" to win anything?

These final 7 games are going to a beotch to get through. They are all probably going to be close, and we are likely going to have to keep hitting 42% of our threes to win most of them.

I think we are talented, I think we play really hard, and I think that the NCAAs are still a definite possibility...but to "expect" anything is taking it a little to far.

[GregClausenForever]

I think my expectations are the same as day one.  The mantra that my friends and family and I keep repeating has gone, "This is a team that will win games they aren't supposed to win and lose games they aren't supposed to lose."

The mantra has held strong so far, and I'm sure we'll see it play out again.  I'm not going to be surprised -- nor disappointed -- if we finish the season right at .500.

Would I like better?  Yeah, I think we can make the tourney if the ball takes the right bounces.  But I'm very impressed with what Buzz has done and think we have plenty to be thankful for.

[karavotsos]

My main goal at the beginning of this season was to remain competitive.  

My main goal at the beginning of the season was to drink less and lose 25 lbs.  I should have let MU try to achieve my goals for me.

I made a 3-person bet on Sat: I got MU single digit seed vs. MU double digit seed vs. MU NIT.

Let the games begin.

[HoopsMalone]

I think there were legitimate concerns about having a dud season and hurting Buzz's reputation.  It would not have mattered that much because everyone could keep in context that we lost the amigos. 

Id love to see us win some games and get into the tournament, but Vander Blue and that recruiting class softens any bumps the rest of the way. 

[Tom Crean's Tanning Bed]

So you think an 11-7 team from the BE would not get in?  I would disagree completely

There is precedent for 10 win Big East teams not getting in the field.  See Providence last year (10-8) and Syracuse in 2007 (10-6).  11 would be golden for making the field for MU.

[MR.HAYWARD]

I HAVE HAD HIGHER EXPECTATIONS FOR THIS TEAM SINCE 4/1/2008.  On that day a mediocre poser left for a better job. It was my sincere beleivf that this poser was holding the program back with beleo average recruiting and piss poor coaching.  Meanwhile the masses were wetting there pants that all that we had ( that of 5th-6th palce conference finshes, NIT's , and 1st round conference and NCAA flameouts) was the best we could hope for and our only hope of that had just urinated on us. 

So yes my expectations are higher as I saw a CEO of the program underacheiving his postiona and only maintaining his job do to something he had accomplished 5 years earlier. 

[LAZER]

I think everyone's expectations should be 5-2 from here out.  3-1 at home, 2-1 on the road.  2-2 at home is unacceptable.  They should most definitely beat South Florida, probably beat ND, and I think a split between Pitt and Louisville.  Regardless of whether you think these are high expectations or not I think everyone should have high expectations.  I think hoping to be competetive is a cop out and right now all of us should be dissappointed if this team isn't in the tournament.  unnatural carnal knowledge the NIT.