MU Scrimmages Virginia

As has been the custom for the last four years, Marquette will do without two exhibition games in favor of a scrimmage against another opponent. Last year, Buzz and company went to Virginia, and this year they return the favor with a scrimmage at the Al McGuire Center this year. Although reporters are not allowed and details will be scarce, there might be some rumors or reports that leak out. In the meantime, Rosiak has a great story about the history of the scrimmages and the plan for the day. It's a high quality piece chock full of info.

In the meantime, since details of the scrimmage won't be available, watch some videos!

MU Released Episode 10 of their Revealed Series. This one follows the seniors at BE Media Day.



Plus, there's a feature on Reggie Smith and how he got to Marquette.



Many season ticket holders are starting to receive their tickets. It won't be long now.

In the spotlight at MSG

UPDATED

Big East media day has come and gone generating a plethora of basketball-related content on the interwebs. One trend? There's not much focus on Marquette this season by the media covering the league. In some cases it's as if MU is not even worth the pixels on your screen.

Despite a handful (literally) of consecutive top-5 Big East finishes Marquette remains an outsider without a compelling storyline, which certainly feeds into the underdog culture that drives Buzz Williams' program. Despite a rational case for JFB as the POY, he didn't even make the first team and he's not even considered the league's elite combo forward by some despite better production.

Back to the coverage. As you'd expect, Steve Lavin is the 2010 media darling and the philanderer who recruits misogynists remains unavoidable for comment. Nevertheless, here's a sampler of the Big East coverage today.

We'll start with the red herring - a modest feature on Marquette hoops from the Chicago Tribune. Good morning Oliver Purnell!

Villanova by the Numbers analyzes the variances of the primary pre-season polls for the 2010-2011 Big East season. The predicted finish for MU ranges from 6th to 9th.

Also, in response to a question from twitter, @kevinpvincent asked "On average, how many places does #mubb finish better than predicted in the coaches poll?"


The table shows the year-by-year results. Note that MU has technically never finished lower than 5th in the Big East. Plus, despite our grumbling about the lack of respect, the Three Amigos teams were actually afforded some healthy preseason props. Finally, to answer the direct question, the average is that MU finishes two spots better than predicted in the pre-season coaches poll. Take that with whatever size grain of salt you choose.

Marquette senior Dwight Buycks speaks with Big East TV about the Warriors' upcoming season.

Brendan Prunty from NJ.com provides a capsule on each Big East program, noting that MU is 'the toughest out in the league.'

Pre-season rankings are meaningless in college basketball but they breathe life into the schadenfreude that keeps passions high. One pre-season ranking that homers MU a bit is The Sports Bank, that places MU #33 in the country.

And finally today, the team at MUTVSports is back with the second episode of Marquette Basketball Weekly for the 2010-2011 academic year - see the post from earlier today.

edit: updated with sports bank link

Marquette in the Big Apple

Today is the annual Big East media day in New York City, bringing us one step closer to the start of the season. Coach Buzz Williams will be joined by seniors Joseph Fulce, Dwight Buycks and Robert Frozena today for the event. Senior Jimmy Butler suffered a concussion earlier this week and was unable to make the trip.

The Big East coaches selected Georgetown's Austin Freeman as the pre-season player of the year. Jimmy Butler was named second-team All-Big East, while DJO was listed as honorable mention. The coaches pick MU and Louisville to finish in a tie for 8th in the league this year, just ahead of UConn. No respect from within the league, IMHO.

In anticipation of media day the beat reporters from around the league did their own pre-season poll and this year there's some respect for the Warriors. The Big East scribes pick MU as the league's sixth-best team. Meanwhile ESPN picks MU to finish 11th in the Big East this season -- there's a discussion about that prediction on MU Scoop.

Not to be outdone the inimitable Pico Dulce from The East Coast Bias conducted his own strawpoll and pre-season preview with bloggers from around the league. We chipped in and there was some healthy respect for MU, including a few folks picking Vander as Newcomer of the Year. You can read this blogger preview here. Nice work, Pico.

Last night Buzz Williams was the featured guest at the Marquette Circles event in New York City. I live Tweeted the event so check our tweet stream for the details, including information on where to find the interview online in the coming days.

The latest episode of Marquette Basketball: Revealed is up. Also, the Journal-Sentinel posted a complete transcript of Buzz at Marquette's media day. The transcript is excellent. Seriously, it's really interesting to read carefully and digest.

On the recruiting front one-time target Trey McDonald verbally committed to Ohio State earlier this week. The 6'9" big man selected the Buckeyes over MU, DePaul and others.

Nick Faust, a 6'5" shooting guard, still lists MU as a possible destination and will announce his college choice on October 28. Meanwhile, 6'8" Chicagoan Mike Shaw might wait until Spring to decide (he was at Marquette Madness). MU fans are also watching for updates on 6'7" Rodney Hood, who will reportedly decide between FSU, Mississippi State, Alabama, Marquette and Louisville this week.

Despite all of the names Buzz is in on there's a legitimate chance that Marquette may whiff on all these players -- or chose to move on to other talent. Rest assured, however, that when it's all said and done, the talent level Buzz brings in will be at least sufficient. Don't be surprised if there is yet another JUCO player we've never heard of but will be great (see: Butler, J.F., DJO).

After Media Day, there are a few more events upcoming as we get closer to the first (exhibition) game on Nov 6th. The Fish Fry / Haunted Hoops is taking place on Friday. Plus, Marquette will host UVA in a closed-door scrimmage on Oct 30th.

A trip through the interwebs

Good day, sports fans ..... here a few updates of note:

• Villanova By the Numbers takes a stab at analyzing the BIG EAST contenders for next season by evaluating the impact of departing players, team by team.
• While we were regrettably asleep at the switch for the latest The East Coast Bias effort---a review of the 2009-2010 season: here is part one, here is part two, here is part three, and here is part four.
  
• Marquette ranked 10th nationally in attendance last season with an average of 15,617 fans packing the Bradley Center. MU was third in the BIG EAST in average attendance (trailing Syracuse and Louisville), second among private institutions nationally (Syracuse), and first among all Jesuit institutions. MU details the news here.
• Congratulations are in order for new Marquette University graduates Lazar Hayward, David Cubillan and Maurice Acker. These young men carry on a laudable tradition with the Marquette hoops program where "61 of 63 MU players...have graduated in the last 19 years and ...each of the 34 players to complete their eligibility at Marquette since 1999-2000 season ... have gotten their degrees." Remarkable.
• Buzz Williams will host his annual BBQ next month -- info can be found here.
• Congratulations also to Lazar Hayward for being named one of the 2010 Ralph H. Metcalfe Senior Outstanding Athletes. Ralph Metcalfe -- what a great American.
• Check out this Marquette link. Besides the video, make sure you drill down into other links for cool info on drills, workout programs, and leadership thoughts.
  
• The 2010 Warrior Day Golf Outing is two months away --- please register
  

Finally, here is a cool Draft Combine Interview with Lazar

BIG EAST coaches recognize Hayward

The BIG EAST announced the coaches' pre-season 2009-2010 all-conference selections at media day this morning. Unlike the unprepared BIG EAST basketball beat writers, the coaches smartly placed Lazar Hayward on the first-team all conference squad. Congratulations, Lazar.

The coaches pick MU to finish 12th in the league this year.

2009-10 Preseason All-BIG EAST First Team
Luke Harangody, Notre Dame (Player of the Year), F, Sr., 6-8, 255, Schererville, Ind.
Deonta Vaughn, Cincinnati, G, Sr., 6-1, 190, Indianapolis, Ind.
Greg Monroe, Georgetown, C, So., 6-11, 247, New Orleans, La.
Lazar Hayward, Marquette, F, Sr., 6-6, 225, Buffalo, N.Y.
Scottie Reynolds, Villanova, G, Sr., 6-2, 195, Herndon, Va.
Da'Sean Butler, West Virginia, F, Sr., 6-7, 225, Newark, N.J.

2009-10 Preseason All-BIG EAST Second Team
Jerome Dyson, Connecticut, G, Sr., 6-3, 190, Potomac, Md.
Kemba Walker, Connecticut, G, So., 6-1, 172, Bronx, N.Y.
Samardo Samuels, Louisville, F, So., 6-9, 260, Trelawny, Jamaica
Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall, G, Jr., 6-5, 185, Bronx, N.Y.
Dominique Jones, USF, G, Jr., 6-4, 205, Lake Wales, Fla.
Devin Ebanks, West Virginia, F, So., 6-9, 210, Long Island City, N.Y.

* a tie in the balloting created six positions

2009-10 Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention
Stanley Robinson, Connecticut, F, Sr., 6-9, 210, Birmingham, Ala.
Arinze Onuaku, Syracuse, C, Sr., 6-9, 275, Lanham, Md

2009-10 BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year
Luke Harangody, Notre Dame

2009-10 BIG EAST Preseason Rookie of the Year
Lance Stephenson, Cincinnati


BIG EAST coaches pre-season poll

1. Villanova (10)
2. West Virginia (5)
3. Connecticut (1)
4. Louisville
5. Georgetown
6. Syracuse
7. Cincinnati
8. Notre Dame
9. Pittsburgh
10. Seton Hall
11. St. John's
12. Marquette
13. Providence
14. USF
15. Rutgers
16. DePaul

BIG EAST Media Day preview

The BIG EAST hosts its annual basketball media day today in Manhattan and a league-wide poll of beat writers shows no love for Marquette. In a poll conducted by the Syracuse Post-Standard, the writers pick MU to finish 12th in the conference this year --- and according to the same bunch Lazar Hayward is not one of the 15 best players in the league.

It is difficult to argue with MU being slotted into the bottom tier of the league, but to ignore Hayward's talent and productivity (he is the league's most efficient returning offensive player and grabs eight boards a night to boot) is a shocking oversight. We were annoyed when Jeff Goodman from Fox Sports left Hayward off his FIRST team, leading to a spirited message board debate arguing that Lazar is at least as good as Greg Monroe. Not only that, but we've wondered if Lazar could have a better senior season than Novak.

Kemba Walker, Mike Rosario and Stanley Robinson over Lazar Hayward? While there is a natural attention-deficit penalty paid by elite players on bad teams, the lack of recognition for Hayward s wholly unnatural. Realize that USF's Dominique Jones and Rutgers' overrated gunner Mike Rosario are on squads picked to finish below the Golden Eagles this year. Some players, like Stanley Robinson, are on the list purely because of the team they play for rather than an appreciation for that player's history of inconsistency. How else can one account for Robinson making the pre-season list after scoring in double digits just five times as a junior, even as the Huskies lost one of their leading scorers late in the season. Meanwhile a player like Devin Ebanks makes the first-team purely on his reputation from high school despite seasonal averages that fall well short of anybody else on the writers' first-team squad.

These BIG EAST beat writers need to wake up.

Below are the results of the poll.

1. Villanova 24 (11)
2. West Virginia 31 (6 )
3. Connecticut 58
4. Georgetown 75
5. Louisville 87
6. Syracuse 110
7. Notre Dame 128
8. Cincinnati 137
9. Pittsburgh 140
10. Seton Hall 159
11. St. John’s 191
12. Marquette 195
13. Rutgers 232
14. South Florida 240
15. Providence 242
16. DePaul 268

All-Big East First Team
Luke Harangody, Notre Dame (unanimous)
Greg Monroe, Georgetown
Scottie Reynolds, Villanova
Da’Sean Butler, West Virginia
Devin Ebanks, West Virginia

All-Big East Second Team
Dominique Jones, South Florida
Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall
Kemba Walker, Connecticut
Jerome Dyson, Connecticut
Deonta Vaughn, Cincinnati

All-Big East Third Team
Corey Fisher, Villanova
Corey Stokes, Villanova
Mike Rosario, Rutgers
Stanley Robinson, Connecticut
Samardo Samuels, Louisville

Player of the Year
Luke Harangody, Notre Dame

If you're interested in BIG EAST Media Day details on content that will be made available this week can be found here. Buzz Williams will be joined by seniors Lazar Hayward, David Cubillan and Maurice Acker at today's event.

Big East Media Day and More

Just a little bit more from yesterday's Big East Media Day as well as getting ready for Marquette Madness (and more)

Big East Media Day

• Even though Rosiak wasn't among the 200+ people that were credentialed for Big East Media Day yesterday, he still managed to pop out some excellent blog entries. First, he delivered an interview with Jerel McNeal. Then, Rosiak also checked in with an interview with Buzz. As always, nice job by Rosiak.
• The conference website has additional information from yesterday's event as well. The initial page has Mike Tranghese's opening comments. The press conference is about ten minutes, but it's kind of worth it. Tranghese welcomes the two new coaches to the league, talks about the history of the league and growing up with ESPN, and then even gives a glimpse of what the partnership with SNY for TV will mean. There are several additional links on that page as well for pre-season honors and the coaches poll, most of which has already been covered here and elsewhere.

Marquette Madness

• Marquette Madness is two days away! Try to make it in person, and if not, check it out online. Even if you can't watch it live, the MUTV-sports folks are saying it will be archived to watch later. The MUTV-Sports blog provides some hints about their broadcast of Marquette Madness.
  
• In addition, the official GoMarquette.com site has unveiled more of their video. In case you forgot the context for this commercial, here's a picture of the Converse Ad. I still love that ad, and am excited to see the full video version.
• There will definitely be some recruits as well as fans at Marquette Madness. Bullseye reports that there will be some top underclass prospects from Illinois in attendance, including class of 2009 player Chris Colvin. Here's a rough list of additional recruits as well.
  

Additional Misc Information about Marquette (or not)

• MarquetteHoops.com also delivers two new interviews. The first is an interview of Jimmy Butler, and the second is an interview with Dwight Burke.
• Finally, for some fun... Since we mentioned Converse, www.marquettewillbeback.com has a counter until the start of the NCAA tournament (144 days). And since we're talking about counters, in case you were wondering how long Buzz has been on the job, the moderators at MUScoop put up a handy reference on their stats page. (199 days)
  

UPDATE: Bullseye link and re-formatted the whole page

BIG EAST Media Day report

The Greatest City in the World will host the annual BIG EAST Media day at Madison Square Garden this morning. Marquette coach Buzz Williams will be joined by his four seniors -- Dwight Burke, Dominic James, Jerel McNeal and Wesley Matthews -- at the event. The program begins at 9:30am CDT and fans can watch live by clicking here.

The BIG EAST pre-season coaches' poll is already out and UConn is saddled with the highest expectations in what promises to be the nation's best conference in 2008-2009.

1. UConn
2. Louisville
3. Pittsburgh
4. Notre Dame
5. Villanova
6. Marquette (read the official BIG EAST preview for MU right here)
7. Georgetown
8. Syracuse
9. West Virginia
10. Providence
11. Cincinnati
12. Rutgers
13. Seton Hall
14. St. John’s
15. DePaul
16. USF

PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Luke Harangody, Notre Dame

CO-ROOKIES OF THE YEAR

Greg Monroe, Georgetown
Samardo Samuels, Louisville

ALL BIG-EAST TEAM

Luke Harangody, Notre Dame
Deonta VAughn, Cincinnati
AJ Price, UConn
Hasheem Thabeet, UConn
DaJuan Summers, Georgetown
Terrence Williams, Louisville
Jerel McNeal, Marquette
Kyle McAlarney, Notre Dame
Sam Young, Pittsburgh
Jonny Flynn, Syracuse
Scottie Reynolds, Villanova

HONORABLE MENTION

Jeff Adrien, UConn
Earl Clark, Louisville
Dominic James, Marquette

In case you missed it, Rosiak ran through the BIG EAST media's pre-season picks on his blog last night. Check it out here.

In addition the BIG EAST also announced details of the conference-wide television schedule for the upcoming season. Per the news release, ESPN will produce 140 of the 144 regular-season conference games this season. The four remaining games will be carried by CBS Sports. 45 of those 144 contests will run on ESPN or ESPN2, and 70 of the 144 will be on national television.

........much more to come.