Jerel McNeal and Tyshawn Taylor updates

For the second time in as many years, one of Marquette's best is dipping his toes in the NBA waters. Jerel McNeal put himself through a thorough self-evaluation before declaring, and he discussed that with Todd Rosiak in a blog posted over the weekend.

Still, despite an extraordinary finish to a strong junior season there's not much love for Jerel just yet:

• Andy Katz barely entertains the notion that McNeal will stay in the draft in his rundown on the impact of early entrants.
• ESPN.com's draft board lists McNeal at #73 overall -- out of 100 eligible draft entrants.
• NBADraft.net does not list McNeal in its mock two-round draft.
• Draftexpress.com lists McNeal as the 12th best shooting guard in the draft.

TYSHAWN TAYLOR TO KANSAS
Taylor visited Kansas last week, and came away impressed (um, no kidding). Today Adam Zagoria reports that Taylor committed to KU. No surprise.

Rubbing salt in the wound

Nick Williams, the former MU commit who received an unconditional release when Crean bolted, signed with Indiana yesterday. A shocker, eh?

Tyshawn Taylor announced he's visiting Kansas on Wednesday. If Taylor signs with Kansas, he'd join a loaded backcourt that should include returning senior starter Mario Chalmers, the tough-minded junior Sherron Collins, incoming freshman four-star recruit Travis Releford, and JUCO all-american guard Tyrone Appleton. This sounds like a less than ideal destination for a player who's high school coach expressed concern over the 'logjam' in the Marquette backcourt.

Catching up with the program

After the remarkable pace of news out of the Marquette program for most of last week, things slowed down just a bit - - - but here are few nuggets from the past several days to get you caught up.

Per this article from the Tyler Morning Telegraph, Buzz Williams hired Scott Monarch as his first assistant coach. Monarch, who until recently was an assistant at Tyler JC where he coached MU commits Joseph Fulce and Jimmy Butler, previously served on Williams' staff at the University of New Orleans.

In addition to Marquette, Tyshawn Taylor is now considering five other universities. Adam Zagoria has the list. It is unclear how interested Taylor remains in MU -- but the truth is, with only role players (Cubillan, Acker) in the program to replace the Three Amigos, MU desperately needs a top notch point guard. John Dodds lays out the case in this thread.

Luka Mirkovic, a 6'11" center from Indiana, announced his intention to sign with Northwestern over Louisville and Marquette.

MUScoop puts fans in the Way Back Marchine for an interview with coach Al McGuire. Great find, MUScoop.

Mbakwe, Taylor updates

Read Rosiak, folks.........great reporting by Todd again today.

Bob Hurley takes a few more swings at MU

.....even though NCAA regulations prohibit Marquette from granting a release to Tyshawn Taylor just because his high school coach says he wants one.

Oustanding work by Todd Rosiak......this is quite a soap opera.

"It's a stall, there's no doubt about it," he said. "If they say otherwise...if this was St. Anthony's High School, and a young man's family came to me and told me that they were unhappy and would I sign our state waiver so that they would be eligible to play someplace else, if I'd done the best I could coaching and it wasn't working, I would sign it and they'd be gone and I'd wish them the best of luck.

Of course, the "young man's family" has not made the request -- so the grandstanding high school coach maintains his faux platform. Thankfully, MU's Mike Broeker correctly addresses the crux of the matter:

"Our obligation is to the student-athlete," said deputy athletic director Mike Broeker. "And up to this point, neither Tyshawn nor his family has informed us of his decision."

Talk about it here at MUScoop.


TREVOR MBAKWE UPDATE
Charley Waters from TwinCities.com reports that Trevor Mbakwe will stay at Marquette:

Former St. Bernard's and Henry Sibley basketball star Trevor Mbakwe, who considered transferring from Marquette after his freshman season this year, has decided to remain with the team. The Gophers were expected to pursue the 6-foot-8 forward if he had made himself available.

There's been no official confirmation from MU regarding Mbakwe.

Tyshawn Taylor wants out

Adam Zagoria (as always in New Jersey) breaks the news........After meeting with new head coach Buzz Williams last Friday, Tyshawn Taylor still wants his release from Marquette University.

Taylor has not eliminated MU -- but coach Bob Hurley indicated that a dozen other schools have inquired, and Taylor wants to take a few more visits before deciding. Hurley cited Buzz Williams' inexperience as a head coach, and the logjam in the MU backcourt as primary factors in seeking the release.

Hmmmmm. On the backcourt 'logjam' - - the backcourt was much more of a logjam back in October when Taylor verballed to MU, something he acknowledged and was apparently unconcerned with when asked. Since that time, both Nick Williams and Scott Christopherson have exited the program.

Of course, Taylor's profile improved dramatically this past season when he exploded on the national scene as a vital cog on the top team in the country. It's no wonder that many other programs are now fawning over Taylor -- and that he's willing to reciprocate that interest.

As for Buzz Williams' inexperience as a head coach.....well......that sounds like the primary driver here.

Personnel moves du jour: DJ is coming back, a few are headed out the door

First the good news -- Dominic James announced at the basketball banquet tonight that he will return to Marquette for his senior season. Bravo, Dominic! Now it is time for DJ to chase down and pass George Thompson as MU's all-time leading scorer, and lead the team to a fourth consecutive NCAA tournament bid.

Now for the departures.....freshman SG Scott Christopherson and 2008 commit Nick Williams have each been granted their release from Marquette University. Adios, fellas.

Williams was given an unconditional release meaning he can go to any school he chooses. It is interesting that MU afforded Williams complete freedom. In the past for kids already in the program, Marquette was prescriptive as to the places a player was eligible to transfer to. Hello, IU?

It appears the next shoe to drop could be Trevor Mbakwe if you believe the message boards.

Even before these departures, Andy Katz didn't think much of Marquette, failing to include the Golden Eagles in his early pre-season top 25. Whatever, Andy.

Meanwhile, Buzz Williams jets off to New Jersey on Friday morning in an attempt to re-recruit Tyshawn Taylor, the combo guard from St Anthony's who has also asked for his release from Marquette. In a Q/A with Adam Zagoria today, Taylor offered MU fans a ray of hope (and contradicted remarks made by his coach last week):

Q: What kind of relationship do you have with Coach Williams?
A: He recruited me. I had a better relationship with him than with Coach Crean.

Coach Williams also quickly re-energized his efforts to recruit 6'7" stud Jamil Wilson from Racine. Mark Miller has the report.

More Buzz, More Buzz

Buzz Williams was introduced today as the new head basketball coach at Marquette University.

If you missed the press conference, check these out:

• Quotes from the press conference via MU
• Audio from the press conference from the Journal-Sentinel
• Video from the press conference from the Journal-Sentinel
• Also, Buzz will be on the road in New Jersey this Friday to try and re-recruit prize commit Tyshawn Taylor from Jersey City.
  

OK, if all of this virtual Buzz is not enough for you --- why not check him out in-person this week at the Marquette Basketball Banquet?

Please click on this link to land over at the eBay auction for a pair of tickets to this sold out event. All proceeds go to a great cause -- Camp Anokijig, a non-profit youth and family camp located in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

Bid'em up and thanks for your support.

Tyshawn Taylor to seek release from MU

Zagoria talks to Bob Hurley, Taylor's coach, in his latest blog.

No surprise, though MU is not obligated to release Taylor or any member of the 2009 class from their binding LOIs. In the past under Bill Cords, MU did not honor these requests - - - but times have changed.

In fairness, the actual quote from Hurley is:

"I would like the opportunity to have him released from his scholarship in the event that we don't like who's hired"

That implies that any new coach would still have the opportunity to re-recruit Taylor and convince him that the new staff would be a good fit.

Regardless, it's time for quick, decisive action from Marquette in the face of these shocking developments.

Tuesday Media Updates

There's loads of interest in the MU/UK matchup -- just what you'd expect.

• First off, MU is a popular choice to get bounced in Round One this week. Paul Zeise at the Pittsburgh News-Gazette is one of the Cassandras, even though he insists MU will lose because it relies too much on the three-point shot. This is the kind of over-simplification you'd expect from somebody who doesn't cover the team, and wrongly assumes that since MU relies on guards it must rely on the trey. Zeise might be curious to know that MU shoots the three-ball just about as well as its next opponent - 35% to 36%.
  
• Not to be outdone, the Cincinnati Enquirer picks a Kentucky upset in the opener. Jonathan Smith of the Kentucky Kernel doesn't pick a UK win but he notes that the 'Cats have a 'favorable' matchup. Digger and Dickie V -- who also picked UK -- must be thrilled.
• Rosiak jumps back in the saddle with a feature on Jerel McNeal's return to the NCAA tourney this year.
  
• Shannon Ryan of the Chicago Tribune offers a recipe for an MU win: a) don't snooze (honest), b) defend, defend, defend and c) be board bullies.
• Chris Jenkins of the AP is back with another feature, this one on Lazar Hayward, who, according to Dominic James, is the key to a run in March.
• Kentucky Sports Radio is getting amped up -- 60 hours until tournament time, the best time of the year for hoops junkies.
  

TYSHAWN TAYLOR UPDATE
This is OT from the NCAA tournament -- but congratulations to Tyshawn Taylor and the St. Anthony's Friars who finished the season 32-0 with a 62-39 win over Science Park. With the win, the Star-Ledger claims this group is the the second-best group Hurley has ever coached. Considering Bob Hurley has won more than two dozen state titles, that's quite a statement. Wow. Zagoria covers the champs here.

Congrats, Tyshawn!!

MU signees continue fine seasons

MU's most balanced recruiting class in years continues to deliver memorable seasons at their respective programs this winter. Of note:

• Chris Otule led the Fort Bend Bush Broncos to a playoff victory over Galveston Ball earlier this week, 58-43. The 6'10" Otule led his squad with a team-high 14 points and 10 blocks in the victory. Bush is now 24-8 on the season and plays Northshore on Friday night in the second round of the playoffs.
  
• Nick Wiliams' LeFlore Rattlers (29-2 overall) are in the midst of a state title defense, and toppped Dothan 67-53 earlier this week. Williams had 11 points in the win. With the victory, Alabama's top-ranked Rattlers earned the right to play Baldwin County in the 6A regional finals on Friday morning where the winner will advance to the state tournament in Birmingham. LeFlore has already beaten Baldwin County three times this season.
• Joseph Fulce continued his dominant play at Tyler JC with a 30 point, 12 rebound effort in the Apaches recent loss to Blinn JC, 76-94. The Apaches fell to 22-2 on the year, losing for the first time in their last nine outings. For a look at Fulce's game by game production on one of the nation's top JUCO teams click here. Despite the loss, the Apaches are off to a record start.
  
• Finally, set your DVRs tonight -- Tyshawn Taylor and the St Anthony's Friars will appear on ESPN against American Christian Academy, led by super guard Tyreke Evans. Tipoff is scheduled for 8pm CT on ESPN. Here's a quick look at Taylor in action:

MU recruits lighting it up

Here's a quick update on MU's 2008 recruits:

Tyshawn Taylor led the nation's best high school team with 21 points and seven boards in an 81-50 win over Neptune last night. With the win, St. Anthony improved to 15-0.

Down in Alabama, LeFlore High School remains the top ranked team in the state with a 26-2 record. Nick Williams had a huge night in the Rattlers' 87-61 win over McGill-Toolen earlier this week. The 6'4" shooting guard led LeFlore with 28 points, five rebounds and six steals. Williams is averaging 20 ppg this season, and like Tyshawn Taylor was recently named a finalist for the McDonald's High School All-American game.

Tyler JC won last night despite losing MU commit Joseph Fulce for the last six minutes of the game due to fouls. Tyler JC is now 17-1 on the season. Fulce was more impressive last week with a 20 point, 11 rebound performance in a win over Panola College. TC was in the house for that effort.

Over to Houston we go for some tidbits on 6'10" Chris Otule. It is difficult to track Fort Bend Bush on a game-by-game basis, but a quick rip through Jim Hicks' RCS Sports site indicates that the big fella is scoring in double figures consistently. Keep in mind that Otule only averaged 5ppg as a junior. One of FB Bush's biggest wins this season came over perennial power Sugarland Willowridge, 63-51. Otule led Bush with 15 points in that game, and had 16 points in a 46-44 win over Travis High School earlier this week. Bush is now 20-7 on the season and ranked #7 in the state by MaxPreps.

Me gusta.

Notes from around the Web

A few links to get caught up on:

• Dominic James' wrist is OK and he won't miss anytime. So says Tom Crean in the latest blog from Todd Rosiak.
• Marquette is still actively recruiting Ohio big man Bobby Capobianco. The PF has visited MU unofficially in the past.
• Big East Basketball Report recaps MU's win over Seton Hall, along with a number of other Big East tilts.
• Joseph Fulce's Tyler (JC) Apaches lost their fist game of the season last night, falling 89-78 to Paris JC. Foul trouble limited Fulce's production, as he was held to just nine points and seven rebounds. The Apaches are 11-1 overall.
• Nick Williams is having quite a season for the LeFlore Rattlers. Track his game by game production here at MarquetteHoops.
• Mark these dates on your calendar. Tyshawn Taylor and his St. Anthony's squad will be on television a couple of times later this season. The Friars will take on Scott County (KY) on January 21 at Noon CST. The Friars will take on Tyreke Evans' American Christian (PA) squad on February 21 at 8pm on ESPN2. Set your DVRs!
  

Miss a day, miss plenty

.......in the wake of last night's thrashing of Providence, here are a few media updates - - and we'll get our WVU preview posted on Saturday. Rosiak has the key updates of the day:

1. Marquette will have a chance to take down The Necklace next season when the Golden Eagles take on Bruce Pearl's UT Volunteers in Knoxville.
   
2. The bummer news is that prize 2009 recruit Erik Williams of Cy Springs High School in Texas broke his ankle and is out for 6-8 weeks. All the best for a speedy recovery, Erik.

Additional updates of note:

• Here's a shout out to Jim Ganzer, one of the lead contributors at Scout's MarquetteHoops.com who looks to be starting a new sports community, the Sports Bubbler. Good luck, IWB.
• The Appleton Post-Crescent has this fab article about MU walk-on Robert Frozena -- he's livin' the dream.
  
• CNNSI's Luke Winn has MU in his power 16 -- at #9
• Seth Davis picks WVU to beat MU on Sunday. Boo!
• Tyshawn Taylor and Nick Williams are suiting up for two of the nation's top ten teams this winter. Outstanding!
• Brendon and Dante are back with their latest installment of the Big East Cast.

New York area alums take note! MU has asked that local alumni buy tickets directly through the MU website at this link for the St John's game in MSG on February 20. Let's have a big turnout, ok?

MU recruits in action - UPDATED

During this season's "Cupcake Central/Please Please Please Don't Come Away With a Crippling Injury" portion of the schedule, here's an update on each of MU's four signees from the Class of 2008:

For a kid who only averaged 5 ppg as a high school junior, Chris Otule is positively blowing up as a senior at Fort Bend Bush High School. The 6'10" center had another boffo performance over the weekend, with 21 points, 14 rebounds and four blocked shots in a 64-52 win. According to the Houston Chronicle, Otule (who is also referred to as "O'Tule" in reports) already has two triple-doubles this season. Rip Van Winkle has official gained consciousness.

Meanwhile, Nick Williams has having a monster season down in Dixie. Averaging 32 ppg, Williams canned 16 to lead LeFlore to another win on Friday night. LeFlore, ranked #15 in the nation by ESPN and 9-0 on the season, travels to a tourney in Hawaii shortly.

Finally, JUCO forward Joseph Fulce had 21 and 10 to lead Tyler JC to an overtime win back on December 1. Big Joe also had 21 in his previous start, a win over Lon Morris. Fulce is having a terrific year in the Lone Star State, where the Apaches are 9-0. Check out this outstanding game log for Fulce from the Dodds board.

Jersey City St Anthony's opened its season with a win on Saturday. Tyshawn Taylor chipped in with six points for the positively loaded Friars, ranked #5 in the nation by USA Today. Taylor followed that up with a 10 point effort in a 72-45 win over the Hun School on Sunday, led by former MU recruit Lance Goulbourne(who had 17 points). The Friars take the court again on Monday night against Cardinal McCarrick.

UPDATE
BTW, here is a worthwhile article on the legendary St. Anthony's Friars - -the article includes a photo of Tyshawn Taylor looking happy in his MU cap. Sweet! This is quite a team - -8 Division One players on the roster this year.......a season that's being chronicled by a documentary filmmaker.

Media Updates for November 28

A quick rip around the Web .........

• Big East Cast takes a look at their first conference power rankings in the latest podcast.
• The 1212 Building is now, finally, DOA. The home to the MU basketball offices and much of the athletic department for decades will become a new administration building.
• Jersey City St. Anthony's opens the season ranked 5th in the first USA Today Super 25 high school rankings. Tyshawn Taylor's squad is loaded in the backcourt.
  
• MU recruit Nick Williams was named co-player of the week by the Press-Register after a huge start to his senior season. According to the paper "Williams had 25 points and 10 rebounds in a 90-71 win over Davidson, 21 points in an 84-47 victory over Vigor, and 36 points in a 70-53 win over St. Jude." Nice.
• Randy Hill of Fox Sports reports early season impressions -- including a few thoughts on MU which predictably revolve around Dominic James' shooting.

National Signing Period Begins Today

Today is the first day of the National Signing Period when recruits can sign binding letters of intent with the university of their choice. Recruits can sign LOIs between November 14th and November 21st.

Marquette is expected to sign four student-athletes this week -- a class that stands to be one of the more well-balanced groups Tom Crean has signed in several years. With this class, Crean recruited to every position on the floor (in terms of skill) and neatly replaced his outgoing seniors (Barro, Fitzgerald, Blackledge), and signed a talented PG to potentially replace Dominic James or to account for other roster attrition.

Collectively, this group is ranked in the national top 20 by HoopScoop and unranked by other services - -which is not surprising given the late-bloomers in the class. Here's a brief look at MU's expected incoming class of 2008:

Nick Williams, 6'4" SG from Mobile (LeFlore) Alabama: Williams was the first class of 2008 player to commit to Marquette. Williams plays for one of the most successful high school programs in the State of Alabama, and leads his Rattlers in defense of their 2007 State Championship. Williams is a big, strong guard in the Wesley Matthews/Tony Smith mold who should see immediate playing time next winter. Big Nick scored 32 points in LeFlore's season opener earlier this month.

Joseph Fulce, 6'7" combo forward from Plano, TX via Tyler (TX) Junior College: Fulce originally signed with Texas A&M thanks to then assistant coach Buzz Williams. However, grades forced Fulce to a prep school where he reopened his recruiting after the coaching change in College Station. Soon after, Fulce signed an LOI to play for the University of New Orleans -- and then head coach Buzz Williams. Now Buzz is at MU, and Fulce is coming to MU. Third time lucky for Marquette? That's what Tom Crean is hoping for. Fulce will have three years of eligibility at Marquette.

Tyshawn Taylor, 6'3" PG from Jersey City St. Anthony's. Taylor, who committed to MU over Georgia Tech, KU and UNC, looks to be the point guard of the future for the Golden Eagles. Because of the load of backcourt talent on his high school team, its doubtful Taylor will begin his career as a classically trained point guard but his strength and size mark a sea-change for the rather undersized stable of point guards currently on the MU roster. With Williams, Christopherson and now Taylor, Marquette should have have one of the bigger, more physical young backcourts in the Big East. Given Taylor's upside and heritage -- St. Anthony's, Bob Hurley -- he could be one of the most vital recruits for MU since Dominic James.

Chris Otule, 6'10" 245 pound PF/C from Fort Bend (TX) Bush. The man in the middle. Finally. Otule was the final piece to the puzzle for the 2008 freshman class, and maybe its most vital component. While Tom Crean aggressively pursued Frank Ben-Eze (who ultimately committed to Harvard), he didn't fall for other bigs who expressed high interest in MU such as Maurice Sutton, Garrett Stutz or Josh Crittle. Crean waited until he found what seems to be a player with better tools, more potential and higher upside. Although Otule only averaged 5 ppg as a high school junior, that does not seem to be an indication of what to expect down the line. Check out this Q/A with Jim Hicks for details.

Tyshawn Taylor commits to Marquette University

Todd Rosiak breaks the news tonight -- very welcome news. 6'3" PG Tyshawn Taylor from Jersey City St. Anthony's looks to be a terrific get for Tom Crean.

UPDATED
After losing out on Iman Shumpert, perhaps Crean landed the player who is ultimately the best fit for the program. Only time will tell, but that's what MU fans realized after Bobby Frasor's trip to Tobacco Road yielded Dominic James. Regardless, this is an important verbal for MU on several fronts:

• As we saw in this video and in this video interview,Taylor brings height and strength to a backcourt laden with undersized point guards;
• Taylor represents the most highly-regarded East Coast recruit to commit to MU under Tom Crean;
• Taylor appears to be a true point guard - an excellent complement to fellow 2008 commit Nick Williams and current freshman Scott Christopherson.

Taylor chose Marquette over VaTech, Georgia Tech, KU and UNC.

Adam Zagoria spoke with Taylor tonight as well -- and Tyshawn had plenty to say about the campus, coaches and his role as a 'recruiter' of other high-ceiling East Coast talent. Very nice (though I'm not holding my breath for a verbal from Dominic Cheek).

Welcome to Marquette, Tyshawn!

Rosiak catches up with Tyshawn Taylor

Rosiak blogs his interview with PG Tyshawn Taylor. Check it out here.

Quick media update

With the Kansas State scrimmages on tap this weekend -- not open to the public mind you, which stinks since it'd be outstanding to see how MU tries to match up with the ridiculously talented Michael Beasley -- here are a few articles to check out:

• Todd Rosiak reports that MU received a scare last week when freshman power forward was injured in practice. Turns out the 6'7" frosh was forced to miss just four practices and will play today against the Wildcats.
• The always solid Mike DeCourcy of The Sporting News ranks MU #14 in his pre-season poll. In the article, DeCourcy notes that TC will rely heavily on Ousmane Barro to patrol the middle.
• Big East Basketball report slots the 'Cuse in at #4 in the league. The guess here is that MU will come in at #3 any day now.
• Regarding Tyshawn Taylor, it makes sense to watch Canadian PG Devoe Joseph's situation. Joseph, a 6'2" point guard, is considering Virginia Tech, KU, Vandy and Minnesota. Should Joseph decide on either KU or Virginia Tech, two programs after Tyshawn Taylor, perhaps Taylor looks harder at another suitor.