Expectations this season

[GooooMarquette]

Attendance down, wins up.

[mu03eng]

Just out of curiosity, why do you think Butler will be better than Xavier?  Butler lost more than Xavier did and Xavier was significantly better than Butler last year.

Don't worry, with Wojo at the helm the season ticket holder count will soon be at yours and yours alone.  Pick any seat in the building.

My bad, I think Xavier will be worse than last year and so will Butler but only Xavier and Nova will be clearly better than us with Butler to be likely better

[MU82]

Cut down turnovers, make more 3s, play better perimeter defense (thereby helping the post defense), and we improve markedly.

Gotta do all three of those things, though. And lots more, too.

[mu03eng]

Cut down turnovers, make more 3s, play better perimeter defense (thereby helping the post defense), and we improve markedly.

Gotta do all three of those things, though. And lots more, too.

Not sure I agree with the lots more part. Admittedly make more 3s, cut down TO and better perimeter D is a big ask but if we get those 3 things, we could be looking at a top 25 spot

[MUWarrior4Life]

Anyone attending the Backyard BBQ tonight? I will be

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

If you think Nova is going to be better than they were this year then I'd throw it out there that Archi and Ochefu are quite possibly the 2 most under appreciated players in the history of the Big East, either new or old.

Georgetown and Seton Hall both lose not only their best player, but by far their most important player.

And Xavier loses their 2 best interior players and rebounders. They were so tough because they rebounded everything and were extremely physical. A Norfol State transfer and O'Mara aren't going to have bigs shaking in their boots.

I think Nova will be better on paper. Its hard to measure things like leadership and chemistry which I think is the main thing Nova loses. Arci and Ochefu's production can easily be made up for. Josh Hart is an absolute beast and was the best player on last year's team.

DSR was the best player on georgetown but unlike Arci/Ochefu he was closer to a detriment in leadership and chemistry. Plus, that's all they lose. Easy to replace him. Biggest question for them is PG. I don't think Tre Campbell is a high major PG and Jonathan Mulmore was a stud at the JUCO level (26.1 ppg and 5.9 apg) but how will that translate to the BEast? They figure that out and they are dancing.

Seton Hall loses their most important player but returns everyone else besides Derrick Gordon. They brining in two PG transfers who I think can be effective distributors. Carrington and Delgado can make up for Whiteheads scoring. I think they are top 25 team this year.

I challenge the notion that Xavier was scary because of their big men. They were scary to us because of their big men. But their top 5 minutes players last year were all guards. They won with deadly perimeter play and quick and efficient 4 guard lineups. Losing Farr and Reynolds is tough, but one of the reasons Reynolds went pro was because he knew Gaston was going to start over him. He's no normal Norfolk State transfer. He was 0.2 rpg away from averaging a double double two seasons ago. I think their staring lineup of Myles Davis, Edmond Sumner, JP Macura, Trevon Blueit, and Rashid Gaston will be the best in the BEast. Their biggest question is depth.

[GoldenDieners32]

I can see a 20+ win season with a WIN over the badgers at home

[DienerTime34]

20 wins, first or second round exit in the NIT. #RespectTheProcess

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

The only teams I think will be better than us are Nova, Butler, and maybe Xavier. Everyone else will be at our level or worse. That doesn't mean I think MU finishes 3 or 4...it's a grind in the Big East, but they should be able to finish top 5 for sure and get a bid

eng, I'm curious why you are so high on Butler. They lose their two best players in Roosevelt Jones and Kellen Dunham, as well as some quality bench players. They bring in two solid grad transfers but that doesn't seem like enough to counteract the lose of their two stars. I've got them as 6th or 7th in the BEast

[The Equalizer]

In many ways, we will be a better team than last year. We have more parts functioning together as a group. We have more depth and we're likely less inclined to "Let Henry do It" when we need a basket.

The questions in my mind for next year are:

1) Can Luke stay out of foul trouble? If he can, it will be because our team defense is much better and the last line of defense will be less tested. When Luke is in the game and when he asserts himself, he's worth 12 points to 15 points a game and can be a force under the basket. If he's consistently in foul trouble next year, we'll be lucky to win 16 games.

2) JJJ has to be the talent we thought he was when the Hillbilly recruited him. If he is and if he is more muscular, the sky is the limit.

3) I'm less concerned about our lack of height than I am the question of our interior strength and leaping ability. I've seen 7-footers who couldn't rebound to save their lives and 6'5" players who could. The key is strength and positioning. If Sandy and JJJ can step up in a Bob Lackey role, we'll be fine.

4) We're probably too strong at guard. As long as we can shoot, OK.

Look, we had a sucrose overdose last year and the NCAA knew it, which is why a 20-win team didn't make the tournament. I think we'll be better next year because the team will play as a team. We're also more experienced but our freshmen are again really good. The only negative is that I see the Big East being really tough, with tournament teams in Villanova, Seton Hall, Butler, Xavier and maybe Providence or Creighton.

I'm looking for 18 to 19 regular season wins and a probably 8 to 11 seed in the NCAA tournament. That's six Big East teams in the tournament, so go suck an egg ESPN!

It had more to do with an 8-10 league record, 7th place in conference and an 0-6 record against the top 3. 

Had we gone 3-3 against Villanova, Xavier and Seton Hall (and not booted one against DePaul),  we would have finished 3rd in conference and absolutely made the tournament all other factors (including the non-conference schedule) being equal.

[Galway Eagle]

It had more to do with an 8-10 league record, 7th place in conference and an 0-6 record against the top 3. 

Had we gone 3-3 against Villanova, Xavier and Seton Hall (and not booted one against DePaul),  we would have finished 3rd in conference and absolutely made the tournament all other factors (including the non-conference schedule) being equal.

I'm not even sure we needed to take down any of Nova X or Hall. I think the Creighton and Depaul losses were the difference between in and out.

[forgetful]

21 wins.  We have some big unexpected wins due to lights out shooting and some serious duds. 

NIT/NCAA bubble.

[brewcity77]

I'm not even sure we needed to take down any of Nova X or Hall. I think the Creighton and Depaul losses were the difference between in and out.

Those two world have at least had us on the bubble, which brings us back to a sucrose overdose. Marquette should NOT need 22-23 wins to be a bubble team. The massive quantity of non-quality opponents meant we had to offset that with more total wins. 19-20 should get us in, 22-23 should get us a top-5 seed.

[mu03eng]

I'm not even sure we needed to take down any of Nova X or Hall. I think the Creighton and Depaul losses were the difference between in and out.

You are correct, Creighton and DePaul made the difference b/t nothing and at least an NIT bid, if not a bubble spot(still don't think we would have made it tho).

[mu03eng]

eng, I'm curious why you are so high on Butler. They lose their two best players in Roosevelt Jones and Kellen Dunham, as well as some quality bench players. They bring in two solid grad transfers but that doesn't seem like enough to counteract the lose of their two stars. I've got them as 6th or 7th in the BEast

I think their front court is going to be really good, top 3 in the league for sure so if their guard play is any good they are going to be tough against a lot of teams(I think we'll really struggle rebounding against them more than anyone else).

They are going to be young in the back court but I think youth there is more manageable than the front court. I just saw that Washington decommitted  so I'm dealing with old assumptions...maybe I throttle back some but I think Wideman and Martin will be tough this coming season.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I think their front court is going to be really good, top 3 in the league for sure so if their guard play is any good they are going to be tough against a lot of teams(I think we'll really struggle rebounding against them more than anyone else).

They are going to be young in the back court but I think youth there is more manageable than the front court. I just saw that Washington decommitted  so I'm dealing with old assumptions...maybe I throttle back some but I think Wideman and Martin will be tough this coming season.

I don't think I would call their back court "young." They will be starting 5th year senior Tyler Lewis, 5th year senior Kethan Savage, and have 5th year senior Avery Woodson coming off the bench. I don't know that its a very good backcourt, but its got experience.

Their frontcourt is good, but I'm not as bullish on it. I think Roosevelt Jones was one of the most underappreciated players in basketball last season and he truly was "the engine" that made everything go on that team. I'm not sure that the front court will be as effective without him and Dunham's ability to stretch the floor.

Depth is a question for them as well. A starting 5 of Lewis, Savage, Martin, Chrabascz, and Wideman is pretty good. Avery Woodson is a great first player off the bench. After that? They have Nate Fowler (seldom used backup C) and a bunch of three star freshman. Depth at PG is especially concerning. Lewis is the only true PG on the roster. I don't know who runs the offense when he's not on the floor.

I think they are good, still a top 50 team IMHO. But I'm thinking they are only 6th or 7th best in the BEast.

They are going to have to have a monster recruiting year in 2017. They graduate three probable starters and their probable top bench player after this year. That's a lot to replace.

[brewcity77]

After the obvious names of 'Nova and Xavier, I think Creighton is the team that will come from the back of the pack to the front. They lose Groselle and Milliken, but the combination of Hegner and Hanson should make up for Groselle's loss while Marcus Foster will slide nicely into Milliken's spot. The Jays seemed to have ASU, Providence, and Georgetown all beaten until losses in the final minutes (or seconds) and they would have been comfortably in with even two of those three.

Really impressed with how McDermott has managed to adapt that team to the Big East and keep them competitive. They'll be very tough next year.

[CTWarrior]

About the same as last year.  NIT bubble.

[Stretchdeltsig]

In many ways, we will be a better team than last year. We have more parts functioning together as a group. We have more depth and we're likely less inclined to "Let Henry do It" when we need a basket.

Agree with most of your comments.  I am optimistic t ice that we will surprise a lot of people with our ability to score a lot of points.  I predict that we will demolish the rodents and roll up 23 wins before entering the NCAA tournament.

The questions in my mind for next year are:

1) Can Luke stay out of foul trouble? If he can, it will be because our team defense is much better and the last line of defense will be less tested. When Luke is in the game and when he asserts himself, he's worth 12 points to 15 points a game and can be a force under the basket. If he's consistently in foul trouble next year, we'll be lucky to win 16 games.

2) JJJ has to be the talent we thought he was when the Hillbilly recruited him. If he is and if he is more muscular, the sky is the limit.

3) I'm less concerned about our lack of height than I am the question of our interior strength and leaping ability. I've seen 7-footers who couldn't rebound to save their lives and 6'5" players who could. The key is strength and positioning. If Sandy and JJJ can step up in a Bob Lackey role, we'll be fine.

4) We're probably too strong at guard. As long as we can shoot, OK.

Look, we had a sucrose overdose last year and the NCAA knew it, which is why a 20-win team didn't make the tournament. I think we'll be better next year because the team will play as a team. We're also more experienced but our freshmen are again really good. The only negative is that I see the Big East being really tough, with tournament teams in Villanova, Seton Hall, Butler, Xavier and maybe Providence or Creighton.

I'm looking for 18 to 19 regular season wins and a probably 8 to 11 seed in the NCAA tournament. That's six Big East teams in the tournament, so go suck an egg ESPN!

[dgies9156]

Stretch, it's called tempered expectations.

[frozena pizza]

I would expect us to be roughly comparable to last year - around 8 wins in conference and no postseason.

[Frenns Liquor Depot]

I would expect us to be roughly comparable to last year - around 8 wins in conference and no postseason.

I am setting my expectation a little higher at NIT.  However if we miss the tourney again I will be pretty bummed about the state of the program.  I think/hope the coaches and admin will feel the same way.

[Jay Bee]

MU - hoping to be able to realistically discuss tourney possibilities in mid-February.

Nova - They had the nation's #7 offense and #13 defense last year and lose a 14% turnover pg who stole the ball without fouling, as well as a 63.0% 2FG shooting senior center. Don't see them as a great candidate to improve. That said, the comp's on their 3-point %'s - both off & def - aren't scary.

Real discussion - Texas Southern. Legggoooo!