Legendary

Al McGuire would have broken the Internet.

That’s been bouncing around in my head ever since Buzz danced on West Virginia’s home court.  The resulting Twitter explosion was stunning, followed by stories on Deadspin/The Big Lead/every sports website, and then television coverage on ESPN.  Buzz felt he had to apologize to the entire WVU administration and address it multiple times in follow up interviews.  Regardless, WVU fans still hate Buzz.  Nobody cares about those turncoats, though.

However, in comparison to the antics of Al, dancing to “Country Roads” was nothing.  Can anyone imagine what would have happened after hearing that McGuire got in a fight with one of his players at halftime?  Or after the 1972 fight with South Carolina, where Al said, "A waltz... a bar-hall bouncer wouldn't take his coat off for this one."  

Yeah, Al McGuire would have definitely broken the Internet.

I like to picture Al in the same situation.  I like to think he wouldn’t have apologized to the WVU administration… or that he would have taunted the students going into apoplectic “hold me back bro” mode.  Maybe he would have quipped at the end, “It’s a good song.  Get over it.”  Of course, who knows what McGuire would have really done?  I certainly don’t, but that’s my impression of Al based on his legend as the myths and facts blend.

Al is a legend, but he's only one part of the truly unique heritage of Marquette in the 1970s.  Marquette had the colorful coach, the flashy uniforms, the cool nickname, and the on-court success.  Most importantly, the Warriors had success on the court.  Just like several generations will never fully appreciate Al McGuire, it’s almost as hard to understand how legendary the entire Marquette program was in the Seventies.

Or can we?

Last night's game hurts... no doubt.  Marquette played an atypical and frustrating game.  The defense was good enough to win, but just not enough shots went down.  However, it really was a remarkable and wonderful season.  Second in the BIG EAST?  A Three Seed?  Back to back Sweet Sixteens?  My biggest disappointment about last night is knowing that there won't be any more basketball until October.  It's so long until October.

For the first time since 1977, Marquette stands poised to continue its vault back to nationally recognized excellence.  Marquette has the flashy uniforms and the on-court success is starting to come.  And although they broke the mold with Al, if there was ever a coach with the potential to be legendary like him, it’s Buzz.  Consider his collection of youtube highlights (Walk it Out), random catchphrases “Lion hunter,” and rambling storyteller-level press conferences.  But mostly there is the consistent on-court success.

Buzz himself would state that he’s too humble to even be considered in comparison with McGuire or others.  It’s as unfair to both coaches as it is easy to draw parallels.  But as a lion hunter, we better believe that Buzz thinks he could be legendary too.  For a coach, what bigger lion is there to hunt?

Can today’s Marquette return to a level of being powerful again?  It’s not wrong to believe that Marquette can achieve greatness like in the Seventies, if not necessarily become the second best program of the decade.  MU has the financial commitment, the quirky coach, the flashy uniforms, and now the consistent return of on-court success.  Despite losing two first team BIG EAST players, next year Marquette will be more experienced, taller, and deeper.  Buzz has shown the ability to cobble together consistent tourney success, and there's no reason to doubt anything else next year.  We have something special brewing in Milwaukee, and it can be its own form of legendary.

Now if we could only do something about the Warrior nickname, everything would be perfect... 

Buzz Williams for Big East Coach of the Year? Without a doubt in the first half

The Big East conference season is only half over, but if it ended today Buzz Williams should be your runaway winner of the Big East Coach of the Year award for 2012. His team sits in 2nd place with a top 15 national ranking despite a season ending injury to his starting center, Chris Otule. The team's only two losses were on the road to league leading Syracuse and a heartbreaking loss at Georgetown.

The only other coaches with an outside shot might be Mike Brey, who has taken a Notre Dame team thought to be undermanned to 3rd in the standings. South Florida's Stan Heath has also raised a few eyebrows with the performance of his Bulls, but do they have the staying power to remain in the upper half of the league the balance of the season?

Offensively Buzz has the team running very efficiently. The Warriors currently are in the top 5 in the conference for Free Throw Attempts per game (3rd), Turnover % (5th), FG % (5th), Effective FG % (2nd), Assists per FG made (1st), scoring offense (2nd), Scoring margin (2nd), 3-PT FG % (1st), Assists (1st), Turnover margin (4th), Assist to Turnover ratio (3rd), and 3-Pt FGs made (4th).

Though his teams can sometimes get off to agonizing slow starts, Buzz hasn't panicked this season. The team has maintained their composure and found a way to comeback in virtually every one of their slow starts (sans Vanderbilt). He has successfully manipulated his lineup to incorporate talent sets that seem to fit the situation without disruption to the team or flow of the game. Specifically the use of Vander Blue, Todd Mayo and Junior Cadougan to maximize efficiency on offense and defense has been key of late.

MU has nine games to go with what looks like five sure fire wins and four others that are winnable, but will be tossups. Is 14-4 realistic? The recent injury to Davante Gardner will force Buzz to be even more creative during the second half stretch if they hope to hit that record. MU finishing with 14-4 would virtually guarantee Buzz as Big East Coach of the Year for 2012.

Marquette Link Bomb

(BE Media Day, Madness, and more)

Yesterday was Big East Media Day.  Marquette was picked to finish sixth by the coaches.  UConn and Syracuse were voted in a tie for first.  As we commented yesterday on twitter, there's not much that separates the #3 and #11 teams this year, so MU is in a good spot.  Putting the homer glasses on, we think a top four finish is reasonable.  Why not?

DJO was voted to the all-BIG EAST first team, joining preseason POY Ashton Gibbs, Jeremy Lamb, Tim Abromaitis, Kris Joseph, and Kevin Jones.  The Predator (Jae Crowder) was voted honorable mention all-BIG EAST.

The Big EAST website has an interview with Buzz Williams.  In refreshing news, Buzz immediately starts talking about how bad MU was defensively (no kidding) despite the strengths offensively.  Crowder and DJO joined Buzz this year for BE Media Day, continuing the tradition of Buzz bringing the seniors for the event.

Note that all those links are direct links instead of from the Journal-Sentinel.  Evidently, Todd Rosiak is no longer the MU beat reporter (boo), and he's been replaced by sportswriting robot Tom Enlund.  I think even the interviews with Dwyane Wade (Wade sees potential, Wade talks lockout) were written by a robot.  We'd ask Enlund if this is true via twitter, except that sportswriting robots don't use twitter.  (editors note:  robots do actually use twitter)

The Paint Touches blog continues to get it done, with a nice feature on Juan Anderson and his versatility.  If you're really looking for a MU fix, they teamed with WMUR Sports for Marquette Madness.  Tons of audio links.

speaking of Madness, here is the 2011 MU Men's Video that kicked off the event

If you didn't catch it, quite a few former players showed up at Madness (Novak, Butler, Hayward, Matthews, and Wade).  Watch the video of them being introduced.  Not to mention RJax, Cordell, and Terry Sanders showing up for the event. 

Or, you could just go and watch (or rewatch) the entire Madness event online now

Finally, if you watch nothing else, take 45 seconds to watch Buzz singing Sweet Caroline.  Then watch it again.  Everything about this clip makes me happy.

Thoughts on the Erik Williams transfer

Last week Marquette confirmed that 6'8" sophomore Erik Williams will transfer after the spring semester. According to Todd Rosiak, Williams will likely land up at a school closer to his home in Texas. A consensus top-100 recruit following his senior season at Cypress Springs high school, Williams never got on track at MU. Williams suffered a Jones fracture in high school and while many insisted he completely healed from the injury, he never displayed the freakish athleticism that so many expected on the college level.

After only sporadic appearances as a freshman, Williams was the quintessential role player during his sophomore season, though it must not have been the part he envisioned. Following appearances in Buzz Williams' rotating starting lineups early in the season, Williams logged a DNP in 11 of the team's first 14 Big East contests. The bench time ended only when Buzz Williams decided to start Williams at the beginning of each half in nine of MU's final 10 games to reduce Jae Crowder's penchant for foul trouble. During that stretch, only once did Williams log more than 10 minutes -- the home blowout of Providence -- and he failed to score in half of those contests.

Some fans have groused about the loss of a baseline player, claiming that Williams showed flashes of being a solid rebounder and contributor next season. That is just not the case. Williams had two full seasons to contribute, was unable to breakthrough and was recruited over when Jae Crowder matriculated to MU. Still, credit Williams for persevering through a coaching change (he verballed when Crean ran the program), recovering from a debilitating injury, and finally for working diligently for two years before making his decision to move on.

Ultimately the transfer makes sense for the player and the program. Erik Williams will find a program he is more comfortable with and take full advantage of a redshirt season to emerge as a major contributor elsewhere in 2012-2013. Meanwhile, MU will be able to retool the roster with a player who might be a better fit, while the the key contributors for next year's Warrior squad remain in tact. Also, Buzz Williams now has two scholarships available as the spring signing period winds down later this month.

Williams is the second Cy Springs player to transfer from Marquette in the last decade. Guard Karon Bradley, a member of the 2003 Final Four team, left MU for Wichita State after his sophomore season. In the WayBack Machine, Williams' high school coach John Harmatuk shared his thoughts about Williams after his commitment to MU.

A dose of reality

.....Also if you're interested in downloading your own three-point goggles, click here. \\\OO///

These goggles are kind of a big deal these days.

Marquette Elitism?

Dr. Blackheart is back for more, this time looking at the concept of Marquette Elitisim -- topical given the ongoing 'Buzz Williams to NAME A SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY' speculation that is driving many fans completely bonkers.

*********************************************

Marquette University is one of only 12 basketball programs that have made six straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including: Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Michigan State, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Villanova, Wisconsin and Xavier. Over the past five Big Dances, these teams have won two national championships, reached five Final Fours, thirteen Elite 8’s, and twenty-six Sweet Sixteens. Every team but one has at least a Sweet 16 finish. Six of these teams had three Sweet 16 finishes or better (including Xavier the last three in a row), and three others had two Sweet 16’s or better. The Sweet 16 outlier? I think we know the painful answer to that question—even despite the presence of (then) four future NBA players.

As a result, the MU fan base has morphed itself into a group of tortured artists, doubting every good win, over-analyzing every close loss (which have been many), and agonizing over every freak injury, missed Jim Burr call, or Buzz rumor or decision. However, the fact that MU has now made the NCAA Dance every year it has been a member of the Big East is amazing, and a sure sign of a great program.

Three in a Row…

Buzz Williams and Hank Raymonds are the only MU head coaches in history who have made the NCAA’s their first three seasons at the helm. Both inherited a strong returning group of players, but Buzz’s journey was tougher due to the roster/recruit turnover when Tom Crean left for Indiana. Previously, I reviewed Dan Hanner’s blog piece which singled out Buzz’s performance among the up and coming coaches hired 2-3 years ago. It was also pointed out that many MU coaching alums drew note in Hanner’s blog piece—a strong sign of MU’s elite coaching tree.
So, taking some liberty with Pomeroy’s statistics (meant to be reflective of a current season, but consistent enough in methodology and statistical ranges to use here for discussion purposes across the past three seasons), I compiled Pomeroy averages on overall ratings (Pythagorean), offensive and defensive efficiency ratings, and the difference between the two to compare all D1 teams. This can provide a relative measuring stick on how well Buzz’s Warriors rank versus the elite programs.

So let’s take a look at MU over these trio of years versus other top teams.

• Buzz’s teams rack-up as #23 on the overall rating tote board, or 7th in the Big East with ND on our heels. The Top 25 summary clearly shows who the consistently elite teams are, and that the Big East dominates.
• Offensively, MU’s offensive efficiency ranked a superb #9 nationally, third in the BE and just behind the Badgers who are sixth nationally.
• Defensively, MU is 52nd nationally (only Top 25 Overall teams are shown) and 9th in the BE. Clearly a weak link when talking elite.
• On offense-defense differential, MU’s +21.2 positive gap ranks 19th, tied with Georgetown and our future foe Xavier.
• X Outlook: Offensively, MU is slightly better than Xavier. The X-Men are a better defensively. The gap is a wash as is the Vegas line. Will MU finally break-through to the Sweet 16? Rob shows that teams who play good defense are the ones who advance deep. However, for the first time in five seasons, MU has a post-presence advantage in the NCAA, so I am predicting a MU win on Friday and a long-deserved Sweet 16 trip after a season sweep of Syracuse on Sunday.
  

3 Year Kpom Pyth Rank	Team/2011 Seed	3 Year Off. Eff. AVG.	3 Year Def. Eff. AVG.	O VS. D Gap
1	Duke 1	120.3	87.9	32.3
2	Kansas 1	118.8	88.1	30.7
3	Syracuse 3	116.9	90.2	26.6
4	Pittsburgh 1	117.8	91.2	26.6
5	Purdue 3	111.3	87.1	24.3
6	West Virginia 5	115.0	90.1	24.9
7	Ohio St. 1	118.7	91.4	27.3
8	Texas 4	113.7	89.4	24.2
9	Brigham Young 3	116.2	91.8	24.4
10	Louisville 4	113.1	89.1	24.0
11	Wisconsin 4	117.3	92.8	24.4
12	Washington 7	114.0	91.1	22.9
13	Kentucky 4	114.1	89.8	24.4
14	Missouri 11	114.1	90.8	23.2
15	Villanova 9	115.4	92.9	22.5
16	Connecticut 3	112.9	89.5	23.4
17	North Carolina 2	114.3	90.2	24.1
18	Clemson 12	111.6	90.6	21.0
19	Michigan St. 10	112.3	90.7	21.6
20	Xavier 6	113.3	92.1	21.2
21	Georgetown 6	113.9	92.7	21.2
22	San Diego St. 2	111.2	90.3	20.9
23	Marquette 11	115.7	94.6	21.2
24	Kansas St. 5	112.0	91.2	20.8
25	Notre Dame 2	119.0	97.3	21.7

Let’s Go (Marquette)!

So, is MU an elite program today or is it a qualified stepping stone? Consecutive NCAA appearances say yes. Coaching tree says yes. Offensive efficiency says yes. History, financials, facilities and attendance say yes. Recruiting says close. NCAA finishes and defense say not yet. Will Buzz continue to build his legacy at MU? The Elite Tag tipping point will be decided this weekend.

Let the hand wringing begin.

The NCAA Tourney, money and the coaching carousel

More to come later today but for your morning coffee here are a handful of must-read articles about the Marquette Warriors as they head into the NCAA Tournament.

It has been a while since we've done a simple media update but it has also been a long time since the Marquette program was featured prominently in the Wall Street Journal. Check out the Journal's feature on the "big play goggles" that are now so often part of players' antics on the court. Darius Johnson-Odom, Vander Blue, Buzz Williams and Marquette graduate Wesley Matthews are all either quoted or mentioned.

Marquette's players started to mark three-pointers with goggles for their Jan. 10 home game against Notre Dame after Wesley Matthews, a Marquette alumnus now with the Trail Blazers, called Johnson-Odom, a Marquette junior guard, and told him about the latest trend in Portland. "He made sure that we did it," Johnson-Odom said.

Also this morning, Todd Rosiak offers a closer look at the Xavier Musketeers, one of the most consistent and successful programs of the past decade. Paul Imig of Fox Sports Wisconsin reports that the Warriors are confident entering the NCAAs thanks in part to the brutal Big East conference schedule.

Speaking of the Big East, Marquette is one of the financial beasts of the Big East, generating nearly $14M in revenue from its basketball program, well above the conference average of $9.6M. Check out this interesting article in Forbes from earlier this month.

Finally -- and perhaps most interesting -- Buzz Williams' name is now popping up in connection to other jobs in the annual Spring Speculation Season. Given Williams' significant regional heritage it is no surprise that Dave Sittler of the Tulsa World focuses this morning's entire column on why Buzz Williams is the best choice to take over the Oklahoma Sooners program. Meanwhile several reporters, including ESPN's Andy Katz, have indicated that Arkansas is interested in Buzz though the Razorbacks are expected to push hard for former Nolan Richardson assistant Mike Anderson, the current head coach at Mizzou.

Madness, I tell you.

Problems At The Point

For the first time in nearly two decades, Marquette basketball has a point guard problem.

This is hard to believe for a program that, since 1992, has consecutively relied on the able skills and high basketball IQs of Tony Miller, Aaron Hutchins, Cordell Henry, Travis Diener, Dominic James and (gasp!) Maurice Acker. Nevertheless, Marquette's run of excellence at the point is over and no relief is in sight.

While this year's team has a variety of issues, the lack of a 'Traditional Marquette Point Guard' has cost the Warriors a chance at a handful of victories. This year MU surely leads the nation in last-second shots not taken, and the team's struggles to maintain large leads (and late leads) often boils down to poor decision-making and a lack of the appropriate skills for the moment.

The problems are not limited to only the very close games. In the second half against Georgetown the offense endured a turnover rate of 24%, meaning MU coughed the ball up once every four times down the court. The pattern continued against St. Johns where poor decision-making and turnovers doomed the Warriors. All told, Marquette point guards combined for eight turnovers against the Johnnies and MU had a turnover rate of 25% for the game and 31% in the second half alone. Opponents have figured out MU and the team is struggling to adjust in the season's final stages.

Dwight Buycks, forced to play out of position as this team's de-facto point guard, was strong out of the gate but his effectiveness has waned noticeably in recent weeks. Still, Buycks' selflessness and his willingness to learn a new position nearly allowed MU to bridge from the "Golden Era of Marquette Point Guards" while not being one himself. Unfortunately, this may be a bridge to nowhere.

Junior Cadougan, supported by incoming freshman Derrick Wilson, figures to be the starting point guard on next year's team. Still, the sophomore shows few signs of being the solid 30-35 mpg team leader the program needs. Cadougan is an 'east to west' player who currently struggles to defend, struggles to challenge defenders off the bounce, and is no threat to score. While he is improving -- his A/TO ratio is very good -- the Toronto native is role player at a position where the program needs so much more.

Looking ahead, next season the Warriors will be loaded, returning two of the Big East's 10 best players in Jae Crowder and Darius Johnson-Odom. Jamil Wilson figures to be one of the league's top newcomers and a full year of maturity for what will be a more veteran roster will pay dividends.

Perhaps Cadougan will channel Maurice Acker -- oft-maligned by yours truly heading into his senior season -- and step up his level of play to unexpectedly. One can hope.

While it could be a reach, Buzz Williams could consider shifting Vander Blue to the point. Blue is not a classic '2' and seems to be more of an 'Alpha Dog' - a guard who plays better with the ball in his hands, breaking down defenders off the dribble. While this might be the kind of player Blue develops into, it would be a tall order to assume a lead role like this as a sophomore on a team that needs a savvy distributor who can shoot. His development at this position might depend on how Buzz uses the final two available scholarships for next season.

What about the bigs? Game by game (year by year?), Marquette fans lament the program's lack of skilled big men. However as Pudner pointed out and Rosiak noted earlier this week, Marquette in good shape on the baseline. Chris Otule continues to make great strides and freshman Davante Gardner also shows great promise. Few big men dominate offensively or defensively so a core of serviceable big men is a more realistic and attainable strategy for most high-major programs.

Who knew the strength of the program would shift to the front court in just a matter of months.

Without a natural point guard who has the basketball intellect to make good decisions consistently, the ability to set up his teammates, and the skill to score, the team is at a disadvantage. Buzz Williams has two open scholarships and must find a way to improve at the point or risk running a rudderless but talented bunch out onto the court next season.

Pros and Cons of adding Korie Lucious to the Marquette basketball team

A variety of sources (twitter, USA Today, Detroit Free Press) in the last week have indicated that former Michigan State Spartan and Milwaukee native, Korie Lucious, will transfer to another school after his dismissal by Tom Izzo. The two leading candidates appear to be Iowa State University and Marquette. Lucious visited Iowa State recently and reported to have a good time....of course has anyone ever read a post by a recruit anywhere where they said they had a terrible time? Lucious has several "best friends" on the Iowa State team, including former Spartan Chris Allen and Milwaukee native Diante Garrett.

He is expected to visit Marquette soon, though he's certainly been around the Marquette campus many times throughout the years, including Summer pickup games with members of the UW-M and Marquette teams. He knows the campus and Buzz Williams.

That leads us to the pressing question....is it a good idea for Marquette and Buzz Williams to take on Korie Lucious?

Let's take a look at the Pros and Cons of such a transfer.


CONS

• Lucious was recently kicked off the Michigan State program by Tom Izzo, one of the legendary coaches in the NCAA who has been known to have a fairly liberal leash. If you're kicked off by Izzo, you've done something seriously wrong. Why was he kicked off other than the standard "Conduct Detrimental To The Team"? Rumors aplenty on the actual reason, if you search the internet they are there to be found. One would imagine if either of the two most consistent rumors were true, there would be no chance of him coming to MU...one would imagine. Of course, who knows if either of those rumors are true or perhaps our staff believes Mr. Lucious deserves yet another chance.

• Lucious was suspended for the season opener this year back in November after a conviction on reckless driving, a charge that originally was driving while intoxicated but was reduced.

• Lucious is not foreign to transfers....he originally played at Rufus King for two years before a controversial transfer to Pius XI to play for Joel Claassen. Of course, he only has one year of college eligibility left so this will be his last rodeo in the NCAA.

• Tying up 2 years of a scholarship for one year of actual playing time? Does that make sense for a kid that doesn't exactly have the greatest Career College Stats? 6.5 points per game is a career high, he doesn't shoot well and his assist total rather pedestrian when you account for the highly touted recruits on the MSU roster the last few years. His Assist to Turnover ratio is poor

• He has never lived up to the hype coming out of high school. He was rated as highly as 28th in one service and top 100 overall in the RSCI at 87. Is this because the talent level at MSU didn't allow him to blossom by being the main guy?
  

• By taking Lucious, does this push MU out of the running for some other top guards for the 2012-13 year?

• From an image perspective, does MU need to add a kid that has had these most recent issues to it's squad?

PROS

• Has NCAA tournament experience, including playing in the NCAA Championship game and two Final Fours.

• Plays the point guard position where MU seems to have no true super star at that position....then again, Lucious isn't a super star either, but the depth would be nice.

• Since Lucious was suspended and ultimately kicked off, Michigan State is in an epic free fall. That being said, I would argue they were fairly middle of the road even with Lucious, but they certainly have gone down several additional notches since his ouster.

• One would assume after multiple chances, multiple suspensions and a dismissal, he would finally be willing to listen and play his final year of hoops the right way. The year off could be a blessing and a shot of maturity for the young man.
  

An interesting decision ahead for both the young man and a young coach at Marquette.

Marquette Basketball Friday Digest

Here's a quick look back at the week that was for the Marquette Warriors who now stand at 14-9 overall and 5-5 in the Big East. With eight regular season games left MU still has a puncher's chance at an NCAA bid though the lack of a quality road win remains an albatross for this bunch. The Warriors are off through next week when they travel to USF on Wednesday, February 9 followed by a trip to Georgetown on Sunday, February 13.

Let's look back on the week that was:

-- MU started the week with a National Marquette Day victory over Syracuse.

-- John Pudner noted that MU's three wins over top-25 RPI teams strengthened MU's NCAA chances while we also noted that the fun with bracketology is just beginning.

-- Dr. Blackheart joined us again for a post about pace and the rest of the schedule -- and rightly figuring that the way teams could continue to break down MU was to manage the pace better. This is something we'll look into again down the line.

-- DJO's fine performances in Big East play deserved attention -- this guy was quite a find by Buzz.

-- The MUTV Sports team rocked it out once again.

-- Heading into Villanova, Pudner figured it would take one of MU's best performances to-date in order to win. I was not confident of a victory but expected a close game. Ultimately Pudner was right, MU didn't play at a high level and fell 75-70 to Villanova.

Additional updates of note:

• Buzz Williams is aggressively recruiting for 2011 roster help through the winter. Todd Mayo, the younger brother of O.J. Mayo, is considering Marquette among a host of other schools. Details on Mayo and his recruitment are here.
• 2012 stud and local product J.P. Tokoto talks about recruiting, Marquette and Buzz Williams with Fox Sports.
  
• Buzz is also active with 2012 kids including 6'10" A.J. Hammons.
• 2011 signee Juan Anderson is featured in this article and video. Check it out.
• When in doubt MU should wear white jerseys. The team is 42-3 in the classic whites since the 2007-2008 season.
• Marquette graduate Steve Novak is looking for a fresh start in the NBA Development League.
• Marquette graduate Wesley Matthews was selected to play in the upcoming NBA Rookie/Sophomore Challenge Game during the NBA All-Star Weekend.

DJO: Dominating the Big East

When Buzz Williams welcomed Darius Johnson-Odom to the Marquette campus two years ago, few expected the Raleigh product to emerge as a dominant player. At the time, Johnson-Odom was a late addition to a promising class that carried with it the burden of bridging the program out of the Three Amigos Era. In short order he became much more than that.

Surprising sophomore campaign
Once on campus, expectations quickly shifted as DJO emerged as one of the most exciting players around, demonstrating the unwavering confidence of a seasoned scorer. Although Lazar Hayward was the Warriors' go-to guy, Johnson-Odom distinguished himself as the perhaps team's most imposing offensive force. DJO brought a hybrid skillset of lethal accuracy from long-range coupled with a lightning-quick first step that allowed him to create his own shot in any circumstance. To paraphrase (re-quote?) Buzz, "DJO was the only guy on the team able to go 'get a bucket'."

Ultimately DJO averaged 13 points per game and connected on 47% of his three-point attempts as as sophomore, setting the stage for what MU fans hoped would be a big junior season.

Early season struggles
Expectations were sky-high entering this season, but early on it seemed as if the hype was too much as Johnson-Odom struggled to find his rhythm.

While DJO averaged 14.2 points per outing in the non-conference schedule, his wild inconsistency from the field was striking. The crafty lefty connected on just 42% of his field goal attempts and 33% from deep in through the season's first 11 games, numbers that contributed to Marquette's uneven play. His effort against Wisconsin, where he was just 1-9 from the floor, stood out among a handful of poor performances. In our December Big East Blogger Roundtable, we said DJO was shipwrecked.

Even though he closed the out-of-conference action with a pair of strong performances against MVSU and Vanderbilt, heading into Big East play DJO was a question mark.

DJO delivers 40% increase in scoring during conference play
Were the strong performances against MVSU and Vanderbilt enough to re-establish Johnson-Odom's confidence and consistency?

Apparently so, because in Big East action DJO has been devastating, raising his play to an All-American level. There is no player in the Big East, or likely the country, who has raised his game so dramatically and so consistently during conference action.

At the mid-point of the Big East slate DJO is averaging 19.9 points per game, fourth in the league and a 40% spike over his non-conference scoring average. He has scored in double-figures in every outing, and has logged 20 or more points five times while scoring less than 15 points just once.

If raising his scoring average by nearly six points per game was not impressive enough, realize he is connecting on a 48% from the field overall and 44% from three-point territory during this stretch -- dramatic improvements from his early-season efforts.

His performance against Syracuse last weekend was a microcosm of just how overwhelming DJO's offensive repertoire can be. Despite taking just seven shots (4 -7, 57%) he finished with 17 points. His sublime pump fake set up not only dribble penetration -- DJO was perfect 7-7 from the charity stripe -- but freed him up for open looks from deep (2 - 4, 50%).

His combination of deadly three-point shooting and relentlessness in attacking the rim is the straw that stirs the proverbial drink for Marquette's extraordinary offense. Johnson-Odom is still one of the few players in the Big East who can create his own shot from anywhere on the floor, a supreme advantage for Buzz Williams. Opposing coaches have to game plan for DJO, and his prowess ensures that teammates Jimmy Butler, Dwight Buycks and Jae Crowder have more freedom of movement on offense. The formula works -- Marquette enjoys a most efficient offense, 1.17 points per possession (ppp). As you would expect, MU leads the Big East in scoring offense overall and in conference play.

With 10 regular season games remaining, there's no sign that MU's offense -- or its most skilled offensive player -- will slow down.

Comparison -- Out-of-conference performance vs. Big East performance
Darius Johnson-Odom

	Out of Conf.	Big East
PPG:	14.2	19.9
FG%	42%	48%
3pt%	33%	44%

Video recaps of MU's win over DePaul

Brad Galli and the team from MUTV Sports are back from break and offer this recap of last night's Marquette victory over the Big East's equivalent to the slump buster.



Here is the full Buzz Williams post-game press conference video via GoMarquette.com.

Morning Grinds: News & Notes for Marquette Hoops

UPDATED

The Warriors are in Pittsburgh preparing for the second leg of the current two-game road trip. After topping Rutgers on the road MU remains one of seven undefeated teams in Big East play with St. John's setting the pace at 3-0. Before we get to the Saturday matchup here's a look at your morning grinds on MU:

• Shannon Ryan at the Chicago Tribune penned a profile of emerging star Jae Crowder this morning.
• Ray Mernagh of the Big East Basketball Report also profiled Crowder this week. And thanks to Ray for helping to keep MU's proper nickname alive and well.
  
• The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette compares the MU and Pitt programs and finds different paths to consistency. You must read this article.
• The Anonymous Eagle takes an early look at the matchup with the Panthers -- and even dips their toes in tempo-free stats.
• Adam Zagoria recaps yesterday's Big East coaches' conference call -- good info from Buzz and his peers.
• Jerry Carino offers up a Big East notebook. There's loads of good info here but somehow Carino ignored DJO on his "Who's Hot" list.
• Steve Novak was waived by the Dallas Mavericks.
• Wesley Matthews is profiled by The Columbian -- a great read.
  
• There's still no word on where former MU player Reggie Smith will land up. Smith left MU during the Christmas recess.
• Earlier this week Rob engaged with Luke Winn of CNNSI in a spirited debate on Twitter concerning the relative value of free-throw rate (FTR) and other tempo-free stats. The back and forth was enlightening -- and Luke brought it up in his updated NCAA Power Ranking article today. Thanks, Luke.