"My rule was I wouldn't recruit a kid if he had grass in front of his house.
That's not my world. My world was a cracked sidewalk." —Al McGuire

Friday, November 19, 2021

Marquette’s Greatest Hits Against Bob Huggins

The Marquette Golden Eagles meet an old foe tonight as they take on Bob Huggins’ West Virginia Mountaineers in the Charleston Classic semi-finals.

Huggy Bear and Marquette have a long history together during his days as Cincinnati’s head coach and when West Virginia was in the Big East. Here are some of the greatest defeats in timeline order that Marquette handed the always smug and controversial coach...

02/10/1994: Marquette tops Cincy 61-60 for its first win over Huggins. Marquette lost its first four games to Huggy Bear and only of one those losses were close. On that day in Cincinnati, Marquette Head Coach Kevin O'Neill and the legendary starting five of Jim Mcllvaine, Damon Key, Tony Miller, Roney Eford, and Robb Logterman, were not going to be denied.

03/02/1996: Marquette wins 74-72 over No. 7 Cincinnati at the Bradley Center. The win is not only a victory over a top-10 team but caps off Marquette’s first undefeated home record since moving into the Bradley Center.

03/07/1997: Marquette rips apart the Bearcats and Huggins 91-79 in the Conference USA Tournament semi-final round. Marquette would go on to win the next day, capturing its only conference tournament crown.

02/10/1999: Not much went right during Mike Deane’s last season. On this night, Marquette shocked Huggins’ No. 4 Bearcats 62-58 at the Bradley Center. It was the highlight victory of a 14-15 Golden Eagles 1998-99 campaign.

01/10/2001: Brian Barone hits a game-winning three from the corner during the game's final minute and Marquette hangs on to win 47-44. The victory gives Tom Crean his first win over Huggins.

02/02/2002: Dwyane Wade, Cordell Henry, and the gang combine to dominate No. 4 Cincinnati 74-60 at the Bradley Center. The fans storm the court celebrating, snapping the Bearcats' 20-game win streak.

03/08/2003: Confetti rains down from the Bradley Center rafters. Marquette becomes the first non-Bearcats team to win the Conference USA regular-season title outright. It appropriately happens with a 70-61 win over Cincinnati on the final day of the season. Wade and Robert Jackson memorably embrace at center court celebrating their achievement.

01/01/2011: Marquette opens Big East conference play with a 79-74 win over West Virginia. Bob Huggins coaches, looking as if he was out all night on Water Street celebrating New Year's Eve.

03/09/2011: Marquette beats No. 20 West Virginia at Madison Square Garden in the Big East Tournament. The win helps solidify a birth into the NCAA Tournament and the Golden Eagles go on that first magical run to the Sweet 16 in the Buzz Williams era.

02/24/2012: Williams suspended Darius Johnson-Odom, Junior Cadougan, and Vander Blue for the first half for a violation of team rules. Marquette went into halftime down 32-21. DJO was back on the court for the second half and Marquette proceeded to go on a 24-8 run. Jae Crowder scored 26 points and the Golden Eagle squeaked a 61-60 win. Buzz celebrated the win by dancing on the court. 

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