Marquette-Michigan State Preview

For the fourth time in the last six seasons, Tom Crean's Marquette Golden Eagles will lace'em up in the NCAA tournament later this week. I'd venture to guess that Thursday's opening round matchup will immediately become the most memorable of those four as MU squares off against perennial power Michigan State in Winston-Salem.

Now its time to know our opponent. We've enlisted the help of Tom Keller, MSU's beat reporter from The State News , MSU's Independent Voice.

Tom covered the mentor v mentee angle yesterday, and was kind enough to work on a detailed Q/A to help us get up to speed on the Spartants. Tom, take it away ..........

CS: What types of teams generally give MSU the most trouble?
Keller: No surprise with an Izzo team - it's all about defense. The Spartans have only allowed 15 opponents to top 60 points this season, which has helped mask some of their offensive deficiencies. A team that can push the tempo and shoot from the outside (like, say, UNC, or to a lesser extent, Marquette) is a threat - this team isn't built to be playing in the 70s.

What types of teams do the Spartans generally handle well?
Keller: The Spartans have four respectable bigs they can rotate down low, so few big men have presented much of a problem - MSU put a reasonable clamp on Greg Oden and D.J. White, at least comparatively. Zone defense has also been pretty ineffective against the Spartans.

Raymar Morgan could give Coach Izzo his biggest matchup advantage. Can you breakdown the freshman's game?
Keller: Morgan's a 4 playing the 3 out of necessity. He's got good range out to about 18 feet, and MSU has been getting him more touches on the block of late. Has a great knack for contact. MSU was plus-6 with him in the lineup against Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament; minus-19 without him. It's funny that he's MSU's biggest matchup problem now - it was exactly that mid-sized swing forward that the Spartans glaringly lacked last season.

Every team gameplans for Drew Neitzel, yet he stil averages 18ppg, 4 apg and shoots 41% from deep. What does Izzo do to free him up?
Keller: Relentless downscreens, a la the Detroit Pistons with Richard Hamilton. Neitzel's shifty enough to get a step on his man and quick enough to get out and shoot right off the catch. The teams that have slowed him have hedged way out on those screens - he's a less effective (but still surprisingly dangerous) scorer off the dribble.

MSU is 2nd in the nation in assists/field goals made, yet turns the ball over on nearly 25% of their possessions. Are MSU's guards susceptible to full-court pressure?
Keller: Without a deep roster to do much fast breaking, the Spartans have instead relied on a very meticulous half-court offense, a big reason for the high assist/high turnover count. (A lot of those turnovers come from mistimed sets or illegal screens for Neitzel.) Opponents pressed with pretty good success early in the season, but MSU adjusted well and hasn't seen much of it lately.

The Spartans enter the NCAAs losing three of their last four games. Is this team struggling right now?
Keller: The first loss came with Neitzel severely hampered by flu-like symptoms, the second by two at Wisconsin on Kammron Taylor's late 3, the third a legitimate handling by the Badgers at the Big Ten Tourney. None was a bad loss (the only one that would really qualify all season was the 30-point drubbing at Purdue), so it's not a complete freefall. This team has undeniably had problems winning away from home, but neutral wins over Texas and BYU and two-point road/neutral road losses to Maryland, Wisconsin and Ohio State bode well.

Goran Suton is a greatly improved big man, averaging roughly 10ppg and 6 rpg. Is he a legitimate threat on the blocks?
Keller: Suton's a remarkably skilled Euro-style 4 with good rebounding skills and range out to 18 feet. He's also the Spartans' best back-to-the-basket scorer. They don't get him the ball there as much as they probably should, instead using him a lot in pick-and-pop sets. When he's hitting that mid-range shot, the rest of the offense flows a lot better.

Other than the players mentioned, are there others who might step up and surprise MU on Thursday night?
Keller: Travis Walton is a hawkish on-ball defender who will likely draw most of the James assignment. (Ironic, because each could easily be playing for the other's school right now.) He can be very disruptive, and he's improved his jumpshot enough to add a few baskets a game. Drew Naymick's a steady defender in the post who's averaging almost two blocks a game the last month. Other than that, though, this team doesn't have a whole lot of options. It's got to come from the top seven (maybe even the top one or two), or it's not coming at all.

Expectations are always high in East Lansing. How have the 2006-2007 Spartans performed relative to those expectations?
Keller: Izzo was realistic from the beginning of the season - this team has NIT talent. But the Spartans relished that underdog role, got some big wins early, and have been playing as a sum greater than their parts ever since. They've acknowledged their deficiencies and embraced a system that hides them well. Getting to the tournament was a huge accomplishment in itself, but there hasn't been any back-slapping over it. They've still got a little bit of a chip on their shoulder, and they're not a team I'd want to see on the other side of my bracket.

Tom Keller of The State News, THANKS VERY MUCH!

Time to play the underdog card...get in a lather boys

As Andy Katz said on ESPN after the McNeal breaking news, "take your pencil and erase Marquette and put in MSU in ink".

I love it. Everyone is going to take their swipes on MU now. No one gives MU a chance. This is a great opportunity for MU to rise above it just like they did against Pittsburgh 9 days ago and beat someone despite the lack of one player.

Seize the moment. Tremendous opportunity in front of you

Jerel McNeal out for NCAA tournament

UPDATED

Rosiak has the scoop today on his blog. McNeal is done for 2006-2007.

Or not -- see, Todd Rosiak re-filed a second news brief on the JS site today......now he says that McNeal is out only for this weekend.

Ahem. Sounds fishy to me. Ya think MU made a few phone calls to the Journal-Sentinel? That's odd because I bet Rosiak checked with multiple sources before filing his initial news brief.

For my money, I'm guessing Rosiak's original scoop -- that McNeal is done for the year -- is the right call. It was confirmed later by ESPN. ESPNews then confirmed the story as well in their Breaking News segment.

The MUScoop guys are all over it.

The Carolina Curse.....revisted

More than two years ago we documented the Carolina Curse on this very blog.

Marquette is an abysmal 3-24 all-time in the state of North Carolina (though we have won 2 of the last 3 in that state).

However, we are on a one game winning streak there going back to February 12, 2005 after our defeat of East Carolina. Both Barro and Kinsella made the trip, but only Kinsella tasted any action in the tobacco state.

Let's keep the winning streak alive!

Jerel McNeal Injury Update

Here's a post for the (literally) hundreds of you who have found Cracked Sidewalks while Googling on "Jerel McNeal injury" or similar.

What is Jerel McNeal's status? There is some Internet buzz out there which claims that Jerel McNeal is done for the year. If you keep looking, some even claim he had surgery on his injured thumb.

Want more? MU has its own crack staff of online physical therapists and physicians evaluating McNeal. Free medical advice via message boards, good for him!

There's no shortage of negativity on his prognosis. Heck, Tom Crean effectively said that McNeal was done for at least this week in the coverage we saw earlier today.

And there's plenty more to go 'round. Anonymous tips, 'people in the know', et al.

Bottom line? We think McNeal is done for the year, at least as an effective contributor for Marquette. Sure MU is doing its best to rehab McNeal in hopes that he'll recover from the right thumb injury quickly enough to play again -- but after missing practice for nearly two weeks, a return to good health in time to help this team is unlikely.

Maybe MU is sandbagging everybody on this - - don't forget that last season Wesley Matthews returned from a stress fracture earlier than anticipated. Of course, it took Wesley more than a few games to regain his early-season form once he returned -- so it's only logical that McNeal would endure a similar recovery, particularly since he injured his right (shooting) thumb -- a hand that was still splinted (at least) at the Big East tourney a few days ago.

Could there be a Willis Reed Moment for MU? Perhaps, but remember that Reed's 'moment' (all of 4 points in fifteen minutes) is only notable because Walt Frazier delivered one of the greatest playoff performances in NBA history -- 36 points, 19 assists and five steals in Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals.

Moral of the story? Somebody else better step up for MU. We hope we're wrong, we really do..........but we think he's done (at least as the player he was earlier this season).

MSU and McNeal

The build-up to Thursdays' opening round game against Michigan State will reach a fever pitch soon. Two storylines will dominate the week: Izzo/Crean, and McNeal's injury. The mentor v mentee storyline will be old quickly, but we'll hear the ins and outs of that all week. Then there's McNeal - will he or won't he play.

Great stat for this matchup: MSU is in the NCAA tourney for the 10th straight year -- the second-longest streak in Big 10 history. Impressive.

Tipoff on Thursday night is scheduled for 6:20pm CDT. Dick Enberg and Jay Bilas will broadcast the game for CBS Sports. GoMarquette.com has the details.

Anyway, a few media updates:

• JS on the 'mixed emotions' of drawing Izzo's Spartans.
• Rosiak on MU's depth -- hoping to make up for McNeal. Sure doesnt sound like he'll play.

"I'm not holding out great hope," said Crean. "Would we love it? Would he love it? No question about it. Are we going to go into the week planning on having him? Probably not. But we'll just wait and see how it turns out, see what goes on with him. We'd love to have him but it's not there yet."

• Detroit Free-Press on 'Friend to Foe'

"It's never fun to play against some of your best friends, and I've had to do that on more than a couple of occasions," Izzo said. "It'll be weird ... you know, there aren't many secrets. Not only do we have 20 tapes on each other, we kind of know each other's programs."

• Chris Jenkins of the AP on the Izzo-Crean relationship.

Selection Committee Hoses MU

What a crock. MU gets in as an 8 seed in the East Region. WTF? This is an absolute joke.

MU's 'reward' for a 24-win season (including a 10-win conference season while playing the Big East's second-toughest intra-league schedule)? ........a Thursday game in Winston-Salem against #9 seed Michigan State (who also deserved a higher seed). Mentor vs. Mentee, how cute. The winner gets UNC.

Its been said that the selection committee factored in unbalanced conference schedules in choosing Texas Tech over K-State - - but they must not have considered it with Marquette. Imagine if MU was 26-7 (12-4) because the team had beaten St. John's and Cincy instead of losing on the road to G'town and ND. MU was a victim of the unbalanced schedule.

A few cases in point:

• ND as a #6 seed? I guess conference road wins don't matter (unless you beat RU and Cincy like the Irish did -- their only road wins in Big East play and part of their 13th ranked Big East intra-league schedule. The Irish lost at SJU, btw. And don't forget the Irish played 10 teams north of 200 in the RPI. 10! MU played 5 such opponents).
• Duke as a #6 seed? 4-6 in their last 10, one and done in the ACC tourney. Get Vitale off of the committee.
• Vandy as a #6 seed in MU's region? They have fewer road/neutral wins and a lower RPI. Losing to Furman and Appalachian State must not matter. The Commodores are the most over-seeded team in the field.
  
• Boston College, I mean Betting Central, as the #7 seed in MU's region? Again, a team with a lower RPI than MU and fewer road/neutral wins.
• Indiana as a #7 seed? The Hoosiers have a worse RPI, fewer top 100 wins, twice as many road losses as wins, and were 5-5 in their last 10 (like MU). How on earth is IU a #7 seed?

Sick.

With this appearance, coach Tom Crean has taken MU to the Big Dance in four of the last six seasons including the last two in row. Congratulations. Too bad the committee felt like going Ned Beatty on MU and the Big East though.

The Big East sent six teams to the tournmaent. MU is joined by Georgetown (#2), Louisville (#6), Pitt (#3), Villanova (#9 seed), and Notre Dame (#6 seed). Everyone of these teams (sans ND) have a legitimate complaint about their seed.......the selection committee's Big Ten (Purdue a #9!) and ACC (Duke #6) bias is sickening.

Can anybody guess which league did not have an AD on the selection committee?

Inexplicably, Syracuse was left out. The 'Cuse won 10 games in the Big East and one game in their conference tourney.

Again, what a joke. Tranghese --- DO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN AGAIN.

Folks are venting, check this out.

***keep it here on Cracked Sidewalks for wall-to-wall updates on MU's tourney journey.

Quick thoughts on the BET final

Courtesy of Ray Floriani of Hoopsville.net and Basketball Times:

The Big East final reminded us of the old coaching cliche’, the late Al McGuire (if he didn’t coin) used many an occasion, ‘you can’t teach height’. Simply, 7’2 Roy Hibbert of Georgetown was too much. All season the media (yours truly included) and other observers wondered when Hibbert would, or could, get aggressive inside. The criticism was the lack of touches or take-charge stance in setting up down low. A look at Geogetown’s stats show Hibbert averaged just over 13 ppg. He took 15% of the Hoya shots. Jeff Green, a wise option, led the club entering tournament play with 24% of the Hoya FGA.

Against ND Hibbert had 6 points on 3 of 4 shooting. 'Should be a better presence on the blocks', was the assessment of Hibbert, forgetting the Irish packed the 2-3 zone and John Thompson III is not one to force things on offense.

Hibbert scored 18 points, pulled down 11 boards and dominated Pitt’s Aaron Gray ( 3 pts 5 rebounds) who didn’t get a field goal until just under eleven minutes were left. It was classic inside -out. Hibbert established down low. When Pitt was making a challenge and had the deficit to 13 with 12 to play, Jon Wallace buried two treys. Game, set, match. Classic inside-out.
Over those last dozen minutes Pitt managed three field goals. Classic Hoya defense. In fact it was a classic night for Georgetown who earned their first Big East Tournament title since 1989. They did it the same was as days of old, a dominant big man and outstanding defense.

GU 65 eff 114
Pitt 42 eff 74
(57 possession game)

Ray, thanks very much!

Big East Tournament Pool..."THE BALLS"

Congratulations to "The Balls" for winning this year's Cracked Sidewalks Big East Tournament Pool.

He correctly picked every game in the tournament and won on the tiebreaker by selecting 122 total points for the final.

Here are your top ten

1) The Balls
2) Tamiz
3) mghoya
4) MUDPT
5) Schererdog
6) Kruckster
7) LocoKP
8) Dan'l B
9) Murph
10) NY Warrior (our very own from Cracked Sidewalks)


All of you can check your final standings by clicking on the link below the Big East Flag.

Thank you to the 426 that signed up this year. Let's all home for a all Big East Final Four in the NCAA Tournament.

See you all next year.

Regards

Cracked Sidewalks Staff

Quick notes for tonight's Big East final

Courtesy of Ray Floriani of Hoopsville.net and Basketball Times.

Quick notes heading into the finals. Three keys to the game

• Gray must stay out of foul trouble. Jamie Dixon did a great job, sitting Aaron Gray down with two first half fouls and leaving him in after the third nine minutes into the second half. It was a gamble but Gray's a veteran and Dixon trusted his judgement. I do not feel Roy Hibbet can necessarily get Gray in foul trouble, but Jeff Green with Patrick Ewing Jr can.
• Georgetown must locate shooters. Colin Falls and Russell Carter got great looks last night. For Pitt Antonio Graves is not bashful and can knock down the trey. Panthers also have a few other players (Mike Cook, Levance Fields to name a few) not afraid of launching from three so the Hoya defense has to be cognizant of the perimeter.
• Rebounding. Pitt was out rebounded 44-32 by Louisville. That was related to Gray's foul trouble. It wasn't the only reason, though. Levon Kendall for instance at 6'10 had 6 boards, one less than the 5'10 Fields. Georgetown pounds the glass, Pitt needs a team effort.
  

The efficiency totals from last night:

GU: 84 efff 131
ND: 82 eff 128


PITT 65 eff 105
UL 59 eff 95

Eff based on points per possession with possessions based on: FGA + (FT * .475) - OR + TO

Back tomorrow with a wrap up.

Big East Pool Updated....6 still perfect

Sorry for the lateness in the update....too much partying last night in New York after two fantastic games at the Garden (didn't get in until after 3:00am). Tonight's final should be doozy.

There are six of you still with perfect records:

Tamiz
MUDPT
The Balls
Mghoya
Patman
Schererdog

Five of these six have Georgetown winning so we would go to a tiebreaker. Patman has Pitt winning...so if the Panthers pull it off, Patman would be champion.

The remaining 400+ of us are battling for spots all over the board. Check out the scenarios page to see what your best finish is and who you have to cheer for. Click on the link below the Big East Flag to find your results.

Best of luck


Cracked Sidewalks Team

Wonderful Al McGuire Retrospective

In case you missed it, Steve Yanda of the Marquette Tribune penned a wonderful retrospective on Al McGuire this week entitled, 'Walking away a winner'. Steve spoke with Bo Ellis, Jerome Whitehead, Bernard Toone and many others to shed light on Coach Al and his decision to retire back in 1977. Check this out:

The night before McGuire's retirement announcement, Jerome Whitehead had a dream.

In the dream, McGuire announced that he would not leave the team, but Whitehead, then a junior center, knew better.

"I knew it was the opposite," Whitehead said. "I knew it was his way of saying, 'I'm leaving.' "

Nice job, Steve. Read it all right here.

Marquette chicks know hoops

This is great....Ray Floriani, a freelance basketball writer who often reports for Basketball Times and on Hoopville.net, penned a quick review of the opening night of the Big East. As you'll see, Ray gives fans 'pop quizes' on their basketball knowledge. Let's just say MU passed with flying colors while others failed miserably:

Marquette cheerleaders and dance teams know their school's history. Several recent DePaul grads I spoke with had no idea who George Mikan was. When I asked sophomore Biana Pallotto who Al McGuire was, the Marquette cheerleader replied, "He was a legend. His name is on our court and he put Marquette basketball on the map." That reply was "top shelf" as the late McGuire would say.

Ray will be at MSG tonight covering the Big East semis....look for coverage on Hoopville.net.

Try, try again

Apologies for the less-than-timely update on last night's loss.....back to back late nights with work sandwiched in between can get in the way of blogging (sadly).

Anyway, Pitt finally broke through and topped Marquette this season with a 89-79 win in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament. With the loss, MU falls to 24-9 on the season and now looks to Selection Sunday. According to the Bracket Project figures, MU could be slotted as a dreaded 5 seed. Gimme a 6, please, gimme a 6!

Back to the game. Aaron Gray dominated the lane last night ending up with 22 points and 10 boards (six on the offensive end). Honestly it felt like he scored 40 points last night-- MU had no answer for the assertive Pitt center.

Pitt's efficient offense extended beyond Gray's big night -- I'd love to see the shot chart for the Panthers. I'd guess that in the first half, 70%-80% of the Panthers points came from inside the lane (or at least from within 12 feet of the basket). Things didn't seem to change much in the second half as the Panthers displayed new-found aggressiveness in attacking the basket with just about every player on the floor. For the game, Pitt shot nearly 50% from the field -- and seemed to do just about anything they wanted to do offensively.

Despite the Panthers' effectiveness on offense, MU was able to stay within striking distance for most of the night. With the Panthers overplaying every James drive, MU's offensive rhythm was choppy at best but Dan Fitzgerald's hot hand, Lazar Hayward's soft touch, and Ousmane Barro's ability to finish kept the Golden Eagles in the mix for most of the night.

Everything was labored on offense for MU. With only one player who can drive and dish, Pitt overplayed James in the lane realizing that for any kick-out ,MU had no player who could take advantage of an opening and create a scoring opportunity off the dribble. Pitt was able to rotate and recover defensively on any James move to the basket. Save a few nice layups by Barro on DJ passes or a handful of curls from Hayward, Matthews and Fitz the Golden Eagles were unable to get the Panthers' defense on its heels. In short, MU missed McNeal a ton tonight on both ends of the floor.

MU was led by the sublime play of Dan Fitzgerald who had 20 points and four rebounds. Fitz is positively dialed in from deep, hitting 50% of his attempts from downtown (4-8). With McNeal sidelined, Fitz has clearly stepped up his game. Impressive.

James recovered from Wednesday night's lousy shooting performance to score 16 points on 5-for-12 from the floor, including 2-8 from deep. Still, in two Big East Tournament games, DJ was a disappointing 2-17 from three-point territory.

A few other Big East Tournament observations:

• Pitt fans travel VERY WELL to MSG -- nice job by their fan base. I was proud of the MU contingent last night though -- the atmosphere at MSG was fantastic despite the long wait for the opening tip. While that WVU/Louisville game was an instant classic - it needed to end so that we could get to the main event.
• Pitt fans....handled themselves well last night. In general, most Big East fan bases are respectful and smart. With one notable exception which I'll get to.
  
• Cubillan is a nice player -- but he's not a PG. Still, MU has lacked an effective combo guard in past seasons......Cuby is a keeper.
• Lazar Hayward's improvement since I last saw him in-person back in January is remarkable. The kid must be a very hard worker in practice.
• First Novak, now Fitzgerald. If you were a big man with a terrific outside shot -- why go anywhere else?
• James. Look, he's in a shooting slump but I think that his shot selection in the pair of games out here was pretty good. Absent McNeal, the game is much more difficult for DJ -- nobody else on the team can get to the rim off the dribble. He played another good floor game last night, particularly when he was able to find an open man in the lane.
• Notre Dame fans are a$$holes. At least the three turds in my section. The classy Cuse fans in our section took so much abuse from a couple of Domer hoops 'diehards' -- what a joke. Act like you've been there before. Good luck to the 'Cuse next weekend.
• Wesley Matthews is darn near a defensive liability. Heck, he is when the offensive player can put the ball on the floor -- something that surprised me here at MSG.
  
• The Ville/WVU game was awesome.
• MU Alumni Office and Blue and Gold Fund -- nice job this week!
• MU fans -- we need more of you out here in NYC for this event. Keep it in mind for next year.
• As noted in one of the comments below, folks in the crowd generally like Marquette. I noticed this last year too -- the atmosphere at MSG is positive. And its a great place to see a game.
  

much more to come.......

MEDIA UPDATE

• Here's a good thread on the loss and what it might mean. Good job by MUScoop.
  
• Rosiak's recap -- focused on Aaron Gray's big night.
• Chicago Sun Times.
• Associated Press.
• box score.
• PittBlather's recap. (thanks for the outlink/kudos, Chas)
  
• PittBlather's open thread from the game.
• Newsday.
• Pittsbugh Tribune-Review.
• Ken Pomeroy on the performance of fatigued teams.

Big East Tournament Pool Results

426 Entrants this year from Big East fans on various message boards and blogs. That's a big jump from last year. Thank you all.

The results will be updated nightly (or early morning hours) under the Big East Flag on the right side rail.

The reports you will see when you go into that link break it down by current standings, projected standings, scenarios (who you want to cheer for to increase your chances of winning), etc. Should all be self explanitory.

The players are sorted by your nickname (no real names). Now, if you put your real name as your nickname, then that will show up.

Here are some of the tidbits of interest.

426 entrants
190 picked Georgetown to win it all
110 picked Louisville to win it all
48 picked Marquette to win it all
45 picked Pittsburgh to win it all

All other teams had 10 or less votes to win the entire tournament

76 of you picked DePaul over Nova. Sorry
73 of you picked the Huskies over the Orange. Not UCONN's year
15 of you picked the Redmen over the Warriors. Marquette prevailed

The most evenly picked first round game was WVU vs Providence. 272 for WVU while 154 for the Friars

For round 2, the Marquette vs Pittsburgh game is nearly a 50-50 proposition. 217 took Pitt, 209 took Marquette

Should be a fun day. Tip off in 30 minutes for day 2

MSG Report: MU over SJU

It was great to see MU back in MSG last night -- and even better to watch the Golden Eagles claim their first conference tournament win since 2002. The seats in section 44 rocked (even if I should not have been sitting there) A few thoughts on the game:

• This was a road game, no doubt about it. The MSG crowd badly wanted to erupt and rock the house for the Johnnies, and on a couple of occassions they nearly did. When SJU went on a 10-0 run midway through the second half to cut the MU lead to 49-47 the crowd was fairly electric, albeit modest in terms of raw numbers.
  
• MU fans represented nicely. MSG is a tough arena for teams that lack a large local alumni base....the Big East spreads fans out in small groups around the arena, so its difficult to establish a raucous atmosphere for MU and others with similar distance issues. Syracuse, UConn and SJU don't have to deal with that. MU certainly traveled better this year than last. A nice job by the alumni office and the Blue & Gold Fund teams.
  

The biggest sequences in the game were three IMHO

• Strong finish to the first half: When SJU cut MU's lead to just two late in the first half, 30-28, the house was rockin. MU finished the half on a 5-0 run, capped by a brilliant drive/dish from James to Hayward. MU led by seven at the break -- and scored the first basket of the second half.
• Fitz is tits: When SJU whittled a 12-point lead down to just two points with twelve minutes to play, Dan Fitzgerald sacked up and nailed a clutch three. The game nearly turned right there -- against MU. Huge shot.
• Matthews on the glass: With 43 seconds to play and MU up 66-62, David Cubillan missed two free throws. Wesley Matthews' rebound on the missed freebie was clutch...he was promptly fouled and made both free throws.

More thoughts on the game

• I wish MU had a player like Anthony Mason, Jr. He's long and athletic on the wing -- the kind of player MU just does not have in the program. He gave Matthews fits all night. I give TC a ton of credit for moving David Cubillan onto Mason midway through the second half (after Mason cut the MU lead to just two). Cuby helped take Mason out of rhythm despite the height disadvantage. Great move by Crean.
  
• Mike Kinsella. What a fantastic way for a senior to close his career -- he was a spark for MU, no question about it. Hopefully Mike gets the chance to channel Novak for a few more weeks.
  
• The refs. Sitting with Chicos Bail Bonds, we both admitted that MU got just about every call from the zebras last night. Several gifts. Who cares, MU deserved them.
• Eugene Lawrence is an incredible on-the-ball defender. MU ran several clear-outs for DJ, but he was unable to get by Lawrence off the dribble. 'Gino' is an under-rated player.
• Maurice Acker: No, he was not at the game last night but they could have used him. MU only has two players on the roster who can consistently dribble penetrate. With Jerel out, defenses can more easily keep James out of the lane which limits MU's offense substantially.
• Key defensive stops: MU outscoured SJU 11-7 during the last three minutes of the game. There was a key stretch from the 2:58 mark to the 0:54 mark in the game -- MU held St John's scoreless during those critical two+ minutes...a stretch where MU only managed one point. IMHO that's a good sign for this team -- even when the offense is sluggish, they brought their 'A' game on the defensive end and it paid off.
• MU's glossy shoes look good.
  
• DePaul -- I mean they can't suck enough. If DPU traveled a dozen fans I'd be surprised....it was downright embarrassing for them. The university only sent five members of the dance team and an abriged collection of cheerleaders. Clearly they expected to be one and done.
  
• Lazar Hayward's 'J' looks much better now than it did earlier in the season. Inside, he's always around the ball. Nice player.
• Dwight Burke is a huge 'effort player'. He was all over the place last night.
• Fitz Fitz Fitz Fitz Fitz. Is it just me or does he hit clutch threes with regularlity? His fan club rocks btw.
  
• It was great to see Chicos, Smitty, Smitty and hordes of other MU alums last night.

more to come......

A view from section 44....the drought is over

Marquette captures a conference tournament win for the first time in 5 years.

MU is the first former CUSA team to grab a Big East Tournament win.

Fitz is Tits

Mike friggin Kinsella.

It's gotta be the shoes

Do we lead the nation on bad fouls when opponents are taking no footers?

It's butt cold in NYC

MSG....a food preservative or a basketball arena?

The Dan Fitzgerald Fan Club...one section to our left...in full force with custom t-shirts and Dan did them proud. 20 points!!

The Friar mascot is worse than ours. Didn't think it was possible

MSG hamburger may be the worst on the planet

Kinsella is 80% lifetime 3 point shooter. Mike friggin Kinsella

Dr. B Childs and son in the house

Marquette beats SJU 76-67

UPDATED

Dan Fitzgerald hit a career 20 points, and Mike Kinsella hit two 3-point bombs to lead Marquette over St. John's 76-67. With the win, Marquette improves to 24-8 on the season. Fitzgerald was moneyesq.

Kinsella picked up 5 rebounds and 3 assists in only 14 minutes. Gotta love how Mike has played his last two games in the Blue and Gold. I admit it, I've always had a bit of a man crush on Mike Kinsella, wishing he'd get more PT and take care of business. Now that he leads the team in 3-pointer% (80%), I imagine others will jump on the Kinsella bandwagon.

Dominic James had a horrific shooting night, going 2-14, and one of those was a layup in the first 2 seconds of the game. He dished out 8 assists and distributed the ball well.

Marquette faces Pitt for the 3rd time this year, Thursday night at 8pm.

With two of the Cracked Sidewalks team at the MSG tonight, you can expect some first hand reports of tonight's game and the MU events in New York.

Official MU Box Score
AP Recap
GoMarquette Recap - Notes
Paladium-Item Recap
NewsDay (NJ) Recap
Rosiak Recap - Rosiak Blog on Game
Chicago Sports Recap

Back in the New York Groove

UPDATED
Marquette takes center stage at the World's Most Famous Arena on Wednesday when they take on the St. John's Red Storm to cap the opening night of the 2007 Big East Tournament.

Tipoff is scheduled for roughly 8pm CST on ESPN. The Bracket Project currently lists MU as a solid six seed for the upcoming NCAA Tournament. Adding a road win in the BET (yes, for RPI purposes this is a road game) could help MU ratchet up a notch.

Marquette (23-8, 10-6), fresh off an impressive win over the Pittsburgh Panthers, is looking for its first conference tournament victory since the 2001-2002 season. Norm Roberts' Red Storm (16-14, 7-9) enter the tournament as the 11th seed after convincingly defeating Providence to end the regular season. Last year, the Johnnies failed to reach the Big East Tournament.

Both teams enter the game depleted by injury. Lamont Hamilton, SJU's leading scorer and rebounder, is out for the entire Big East Tournament after suffering a knee injury during the PC win. Marquette will likely hit the floor without the Big East's defensive player of the year, Jerel McNeal. While MU has not made an official announcement about McNeal's availability, head coach Tom Crean was not 'overly optimistic' about his sophomore guard's availability.

So, with each team missing vital cog who will step up? Maybe we'll see two freshmen emerge once again. With McNeal unable to suit up on Saturday night, freshman David Cubillan responded with a collegiate high 20 points, which included a host of key 3-pointers and a perfect night at the charity stripe. While Cubillan lacks McNeal's ability to attack the rim, he played to his strengths by controlling the tempo of the game and successfully managing MU's offense down the stretch.

For the Johnnies, perhaps 6'8" freshman Qa'rraan Calhoun will deliver once more. Calhoun will log more minutes for SJU after scoring 21 points off the bench on Saturday. He averaged six points and four rebounds during the regular season. The New York Daily News is reporting that Aaron Spears will start in Hamilton's place.

While McNeal's absence in a conference road game sets an ominous tone, the loss of Hamilton could hamstring the Johnnies even more. The Red Storm averaged a paltry 62 points per game this year, second-worst in the Big East. To make matters worse, SJU played to a rebound deficit for most of the season, and played to a negative turnover margin.

Anthony Mason Jr. figures to be SJU's first option on Wednesday. The 6'7" sophomore averaged 12ppg and 6 rpg this season. In MU's win over SJU last season, Mason delivered a double-double (14 pts, 11 boards). Junior guard Avery Patterson is the only other Johnnie averaging double figures (10 ppg).

Still, this is a conference road game for Marquette -- a nationally-televised, primetime road game. Let's get this one.

Time to FIRE UP MARQUETTE! I for one can't wait to cheer MU on in-person (finally).

MEDIA UPDATES

• The Associated Press previews the MU/SJU game.
• Rosiak's blog.
• Marquette University BET schedule.
• MUScoop's information header for the game.
• The AP previews the entire BET.
• NY Daily News previews the tournament and notes that a rematch with Pitt "could be the best game of the tournament" -- well, lets get the SJU game first.
• Rosiak's JS preview built around McNeal's honor.
• John Keegan of the Marquette Tribune on MU's return to NYC.
• Steve Yanda of the Marquette Trib on the loss of McNeal.
  

Hey, Ace.........get us back in the New York groove.

Jerel McNeal named Big East's top defender

Congrats to Jerel McNeal, the Big East's Defensive Player of the Year.

A well-deserved honor.

2006-2007 All Big East Selections

Later today the Big East Basketball Report will unveil the online community's All Big East selections.

Below are are the selections submitted by the Cracked Sidewalks team. As you'll see below -- this league is so darn big and deep with talent that its difficult to avoid overlooking a talented player or two.

For example, Terrance Williams of Louisville probably deserved a nod but he was terrible in two games against MU this year which didnt help his candidacy. Wesley Matthews. Well, the league is just incredibly deep. Brian Laing from SHU -- nobody improved more year to year, but he just missed the cut. Anyway, take a look.

Big East Player of the Year – Jeff Green, GU (best player on the league's best team)

First Team

• Demetris Nichols, Syracuse (senior stepped up his game in conferene play)
• Herbert Hill, Providence (led league in scoring and rebounding for much of the season)
• Aaron Gray, Pittsburgh (Mr Double Double)
• Colin Falls , Notre Dame (efficient, productive senior season for Big East's top shooter)
• Jerel McNeal, Marquette (sadly underrated by many. Raised his game in Big East play)

Second Team

• Curtis Sumpter, Villanova (5th year senior was Nova's best player)
• McHugh Mattis, USF (breakout season for Bulls' strongman)
• Roy Hibbert, Georgetown (topped the league in FG%)
• Scottie Reynolds, Villanova (2006-2007 version of Dominic James, the freshman)
• Dominic James, Marquette (despite shooting woes, was a force)

Third Team

• Wilson Chandler, DePaul (consistent performer for Paul Gleason)
• Jeff Adrien, UConn (toughest player in the Big East)
• Sharaud Curry, PC (breakout season for the talented soph)
• Russell Carter, ND (along with fellow senior Falls -- key to Irish surge)
• Kentrell Gransbury, USF (averaged a double-double)

Defensive POY -- Morris McHugh, USF (big on the backboards -- tremendous rejector)
Coach of the Year -- Mike Bray, ND (Irish picked 11th preseason -- finish in 4th despite losing a key starter)

Big East Freshman of the Year - Scottie Reynolds, Villanova

First Team All-Freshmen

• Luke Harangody, ND
• Da'Sean Butler, WVU
• Eugene Harvey, SHU
• Jerome Dyson, UConn
• Paul Harris, Syracuse

Second Team All-Freshmen

• Stanley Robinson, UConn
• Lazar Hayward, MU
• Edgar Sosa, Louisville
• Derrick Caracter, Louisville
• Solomon Bozeman, USF

Jerel McNeal injury update

It appears that MU will mostly likely make their way to MSG tomorrow without Jerel McNeal in the lineup. McNeal inured his thumb in practice last week.

"It's too early to tell," Marquette coach Tom Crean said Monday morning. "I'm not overly optimistic."

Newsday on the Hamilton and McNeal injuries.

Tom Crean recruits winners

Congratulations are in order for 2008 MU commit Nick Williams and 2008 MU target Jonathan Baldwin. Williams and Baldwin each led their respective high school programs to state championships within the past week.

Down in Alabama, Williams led Mobile LeFlore to the state title game where the Rattlers topped Jeff Davis, 64-61 for the Class 6A title. Williams had 13 points in the title game. With the win LeFlore finished up at 31-3 for the season and captured its first state title since 2002. Nick was understandably emotional after the big win. Congratulations, Nick.

Over in the Pennsylvania state finals, junior PF Jonathan Baldwin scored 11 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter, helping the Aliquippa Quips secure back-to-back WPIAL Class AA titles. The 73-69 win over Jeannette was the Quips fourth title in five years. That's some kind of high school program. Congratulations, Jonathan.

Want more? SoCalWarrior's blog over on MUScoop has a video of 2007 commit Scott Christopherson via Wishoops.net. The kid can really shoot.


MORE PREP SCHOOL RECRUITS TO COME
And while the three fellas above are all high school players -- Tom Crean sees plenty of value in targeting prep school kids as well.......and will keep going the prep school route in the future. The Norwich (CT) Bulletin ran a feature story about prep schools and focused on the benefits the student-athletes gain from the extra year. Here's what TC had to say:

"They're products of where they come from," Marquette coach Tom Crean said. "The ability to lock in and have the college feel for a year -- to stay organized, stay really on par, to know what's expected of them -- is just a bonus. It's like giving an automatic red-shirt.

"That's what a lot of prep schools do. That's why we're going to keep recruiting them heavily."

Sounds good to me, especially given the success TC has had with prep school recruits (Townsend, Cubillan, and Hayward). And if recruiting more prep school kids means fewer JUCOs -- that can only help the Marquette program.

Lamont Hamilton is out for the BET

Lamont Hamilton, SJU's leading scorer and rebounder, will miss the upcoming Big East Tournament with a left knee injury. What a huge loss for the Johnnies......the first-team All Big East performer would have been a tough matchup for Marquette.

Here's the news.

No word on Jerel McNeal's availability as of yet.

Marquette Big East Tourney Information

Hopefully MU fans will travel well to NYC this week for the BET in MSG (I love acronyms). To use a radio tactic, 'keep it here for up to date information on Marquette events in New York City this week'. We'll do our best.

Anyway, here's info from Marquette on where/when to be in NYC this week:

NOTE: The official Marquette bar for the Big East Tournament is Connolly’s. Alumni and Marquette fans should stop by before and after all the games. Connolly’s is located at 121 West 45th Street (between 6th and Broadway). (btw, there are several 'Connolly's' in Manhattan -- so be specific if you are cabbing it)

TUESDAY

• Marquette happy hour at Connolly's from 6-9pm

WEDNESDAY

• Kick-off Celebration at Connolly’s.
• Appetizers and cash bar are available from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m.
• email kimberly.kluge@marquette.edu for reservations.

THURSDAY

• "Big East Tournament Alumni and Fan Extravaganza” at Madison Square Garden (MSG). This will be held in the Theater Lobby of MSG from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. The cost is $20/person and offers unlimited access to the Extravaganza area during the games. You must have a game ticket in order to purchase a ticket to the Extravaganza. Marquette staff will sell the Extravaganza tickets at MSG. Non-stop buffet, coffee, dessert, and a cash bar are offered.

It is a great way for alumni and fans to connect. Marquette will have a booth set up where fans can get beads, poms, etc. Call or email kimberly.kluge@marquette.edu to register.

Jamil Wilson leads Horlick to win

2009 recruting target Jamil Wilson scores 28 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to lead Horlick to the WIAA Division 1 regional championship.

Wow.

James, McNeal garner All-Big East honors

Dominic was a first-team all-Big East selection today. Jerel was a second-team selection. Based on their respective performances in conference play, I would have voted McNeal to the first team and DJ to the second. But still -- this is super for the MU program and for DJ and Jere.

Congrats, guys!

2006-07 All-BIG EAST First Team
*Jeff Green, Georgetown, Jr., 6-9, 235, Hyattsville, Md.
*Roy Hibbert, Georgetown, Jr., 7-2, 283, Adelphi, Md.
Dominic James, Marquette, So., 5-11, 175, Richmond, Ind.
Russell Carter, Notre Dame, Sr., 6-4, 220, Paulsboro, N.J.
Colin Falls, Notre Dame, Sr., 6-5, 200, Park Ridge, Ill.
*Aaron Gray, Pittsburgh, Sr., 7-0, 270, Emmaus, Pa.
*Herbert Hill, Providence, Sr. 6-10, 240, Kinston, N.C.
Lamont Hamilton, St. John's, Sr., 6-10, 255, Brooklyn, N.Y.
*Demetris Nichols, Syracuse, Sr., 6-8, 212, Boston, Mass.
Curtis Sumpter, Villanova, Sr., 6-7, 225, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Frank Young, West Virginia, Sr., 6-5, 215, Tallahassee, Fla.

(*) indicates a unanimous selection

2006-07 All-BIG EAST Second Team
Jeff Adrien, Connecticut, So., 6-7, 238, Brookline, Mass.
Wilson Chandler, DePaul, So. 6-8, 210, Benton Harbor, Mich.
Sammy Mejia, DePaul, Sr., 6-6, 195, Bronx, N.Y.
David Padgett, Louisville, Jr., 6-11, 250, Reno, Nev.
Terrence Williams, Louisville, So., 6-6, 220, Seattle, Wash.
Jerel McNeal, Marquette, So., 6-3, 185, Chicago, Ill.
Levance Fields, Pittsburgh, So., 5-10, 190, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Brian Laing, Seton Hall, Jr., 6-5, 215, Bronx, N.Y.
Kentrell Gransberry, USF, Jr., 6-9, 270, Baton Rouge, La.
Scottie Reynolds, Villanova, Fr., 6-2, 195, Herndon, Va.

Here is the Big East press release.

Here is the MU press release.

John Keegan of the MU Tribune.

James was a second-team all Big East selection in 2005-2006. Inexplicably, Wesley Matthews was not selected as a second teamer -- nor was he included in the Big East honor roll. Boo.

SJU update: Lamont Hamilton injures left knee

Jerel McNeal now has company on the injury list.

Lamont Hamilton, a pre-season pick for first team all-Big East from St John's, was injured in the Red Storm's victory over Providence yesterday. A 6'10", 240 pound senior, Hamilton leads SJU in both scoring and rebounding.

According to news reports today, Hamilton will have an MRI on his left knee today and will see his team's orthopedist tomorrow. His status for the MU game is uncertain ---a decision on his availability could be made at the Wednesday shootaround. A 6'10", 240 pound senior, Hamilton leads SJU in both scoring and rebounding.

• New York Daily News update.
• New York Times update.
• New York Post update.
  

Senior Night Videos 2007

I had to break the Videos into 3 parts. Again, sorry for the jumpiness in the beginning, as people were bumping me as they left my aisle.

Part 1:


Part 2:

Part 3:

MU/Pitt

I didn't have a chance to comment about the game yesterday. Honestly, I've been recovering from the game, and creating videos. I'll add another entry when the Senior Night videos are processed.

• The Bradley Center was really electric last night. The only comparable night was vs. Wisconsin, but the BC was 1/3rd filled with bad guys that night. This was pure Marquette. Throw in some ESPN, some 1977 Warriors, and blue shirts, and that crowd went to "11".


• The Blue-Out was great, although about a third of the BC didn't get the hint that they were supposed to put on the shirts. That being said, the main entrance to the BC ran out of shirts 20 minutes before tip, and the other entrance only had Small/Med by that point. Try, try again.


• When Mike Kinsella hit his 2nd 3-point bomb of the night, the BC was as loud as I've ever heard it. It reminded me of the kind of chaos that erupted when Novak hit his 3 to win the game vs. Notre Dame last year. -- When Mike's 2nd shot swirled in, I knew MU was not to be denied. No way we lose when Kinsella hits shots like that. This was double confirmed when the student hit the "tuition shot" at half time. No way could we lose.


• I've always secretly wished Kinsella would shoot from range. I've seen him put them up in a couple scrimmages. I'd love to have heard that conversation with the coaches, where they gave him the green light. -- And, at the same time, the conversation with Fitz, where they gave him the red light. Shortly after Kinsella's shots, Fitz had two opportunities, a good 1-mississippi count where he could have lofted a bomb, but decided not to.


• There must have been a record of no-calls by refs. Huge collisions during shots, no whistles.


• David Cubillan a stud. 8 for 8 from the FT line at the end of the game? Clutch. And the 3 ball from the corner to ice it? Super Clutch.


• Wes Matthews is a stud, too.


• DJ did a great job running the point. 10 assists, 1 TO.
• The last 4 games MU played vs. Pitt have been eerily similar. In all 4, MU has jumped to a lead, cruised to the finish, and had trouble in the last 5 minutes of the game, struggling to score and defend Pitt in the final moments. Thankfully, we've taken 3 of those 4.


• The half-time ceremony honoring the 1977 Warriors was just great. See video, below.


• Jamil Lott has a lot of people to thank. If the MU Band had a piano, they would have "played him off" the stage.
• Here's a few pictures from my seat.


• Bring on the Johnnies.
  

We are true Warriors, and we are Warriors Forever

I taped the half-time celebration of the 30th anniversary of the 1977 Marquette Warriors National Championship team for your Cracked Sidewalks viewing pleasure. The first minute is a bit jumpy, sorry, I was being pushed around by people leaving my aisle at the BC.

"We are true Warriors, and we are Warriors Forever." -- Bo Ellis

Join our 3rd annual Big East Pool (FREE)

The online bracket entry is linked below. Free to join, it's just for fun (no prizes other than the pride that you won it all).

Same point totals as previous. 1 point for first round wins, 2 for second, 4 for the semis and 8 points if you pick the winner. The tiebreaker is the points total for the championship game on Saturday. The second tiebreaker is if you picked the champion and the third tiebreaker (if needed) will be the highest pick percentage.

Go to this site to enter your picks. Best of luck.

Congratulations to Coach Mitchell, Quaye, Ellis

Lost in all the hoopla over MU's men's basketball GameDay festivities and ensuing victory over Pittsburgh are some noteworthy accomplishments from by the MU women's team.

First, congratulations are in order for Coach Terri Mitchell, who has won the Big East Coach of the Year award for her efforts guiding the Golden Eagles to a 24-5 record overall, MU women's highest ever national ranking, and a tie for 2nd place with a12-4 record and first round bye in the Big East conference tournament.

Coach Mitchell wasn't the only honoree--Krystall Ellis and Christina Quaye were named to the ALL-BIG EAST First Team. No MU player made the second, honorable mention, or All-Freshman teams.

Congratulations, ladies. Marquette will play at 7:00 this evening against Pittsburgh, who earned the right to face MU by beating Cincy in their first round game yesterday.

Read the Big East presser here.

The J/S coverage here

MU's story here

MU: 5.74% chance of winning Big East Title

KGSB Panther at the Panther Lair message board has calculated the odds of each team's chances of winning the Big East title using methodology popularized in basketball circles by statistician extraordinaire Ken Pomeroy.

Using the "log5 methodology" to determine odds of advancing in the Big East tournament, MU has an 87.3% chance of getting to a round two rematch with the Panthers, a 32.28% chance of winning that game, a 15.5% chance at reaching the finals, and a 5.74% chance of winning it all.

Despite being seeded behind #5 Syracuse, MU appears to have a significant statistical edge in its first round game. The Orange are projected to have only a 54.2% chance of surviving UConn. #9 Villanova (66.1%) and #7 WVU (62.5%) are given a better chance of getting to round 2 than Syracuse.

Georgetown is favored to win the championship, with a 34.2% chance, followed by #3 seed Pittsburgh with a 20.0% chance.

St. Johns has a 0.01% chance of winning the championship.

Georgetown, Pitt, Notre Dame and Louisville have a 100% probability of surviving to round 2, completely understandable given that they face no first round opposition.

Visit Pomeroy's blog to see the WCC (Gonzaga favored with a 63.6% chance) , Colonial (42.5% shot for Old Dominion) and MidCon (Oral Roberts with a 47.7%).

Big East Official Bracket is out.

The 2007 Big East Tournament printable bracket is now available at http://www.bigeast.org/.

Two interesting observations:

First, the way the bracket has been set would seem to favor MU's chances at reaching the final game--MU has an excellent 5-2 record against teams in its own half of the bracket:
1-0 vs. WVU
2-0 vs. Pitt
1-1 vs. UL
1-1 vs. Providence
0-0 vs. St. Johns.

Luckily, MU doesn't have to play in the other side--where the team sports an aggregate record of just 2-4:
0-1 vs. DePaul
0-1 vs. Syracuse
0-1 vs. Notre Dame
0-1 vs. Georgetown
1-0 vs. UConn
1-0 vs. Villanova

The other interesting coincidence: the three mirror teams--Pitt, UL and Providence--all fall in MU's half of the bracket. To reach the finals, MU will first face a team that it didn't face at all, then possibly two more teams for the third time this season each.

Had WVU and MU been in reversed seeds, then MU would have been on a path that would have entailed three straight games against its mirror opponents.

UPDATE: MU's record against Georgetown was added to the other side of the bracket.

Bring on the Johnnies. MU vs St. John's Wednesday

St. John's is destroying Providence right now in the Garden and will earn the 11th seed. This is effectively a home game for St. John's on Wednesday night. The two teams have not met this year. MU leads the all-time series 7-5.

St. John's finished the regular season at 16-14, including home wins over DePaul, Syracuse and Notre Dame (teams MU went 0-3 against).

Gear up to watch MU in the NCAA tournament

A resource for those of you out of market fans that plan on watching the NCAA tournament this year with Marquette in the Big Dance. DIRECTV and CBS announced a four year exclusive extension to the NCAA Mega March Madness package last month. If you live in Milwaukee or Chicago, likely you will see MU. If you live elsewhere, you never know. There is a solution...actually several.

“From its inception, exclusive sports programming has set DirecTV apart as the leading multichannel provider of the world’s most important and exciting sporting events,” CEO Chase Carey said in a prepared statement. “The NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship is one of those unique events that capture the attention of sports fans throughout the country, and DirecTV will bring our customers every upset, buzzer-beater and Cinderella story.”

MultiChannel News Story

The NCAA Mega March Madness package carries up to the first 37 games of the tournament (games through the 3rd round) and is priced at $69 and includes HD games as well as Mix Channel that allows you to watch up to 4 games at one time. Subscribers with interactive receivers can also utilize an interactive bracket to follow all of the action of your picks as they are updated in real time.


For complete details go here to www.directv.com/mmm

CBS will also broadcast games online for free again this year. If you don't mind watching games on your computer screen and you have a very fast connection, then this could be a solution for you. Be aware, last year CBS' viewers had to wait more than 1 hour on a waiting list to watch a game on Thursday due to demand. They are requiring a pre-registration. CBS has indicated they have doubled capacity this year so we will see if that helps. It is free, hard to complain about performance when it is free.

Milwaukee fans remain in great shape with Time Warner Cable as they are one of the few DMAs in the country that is allowed to multicast the tournament on their system. Detroit, Raleigh, Washington D.C. and a handful of smaller markets are also allowed to do this.

Take Thursday and Friday off...should be a national holiday for hoops fans anyway.

Warriors neuter the Panthers again

With Jerel McNeal in street clothes and Dominic James cramped up, MU held on for dear life at the end of the game to hold off Pittsburgh 75-71. MU finishes the Big East at 10-6 and will be the 6th seed in the Big East Tournament. The win virtually assures MU's bid to the NCAA Tournament (though few thought that was in jeopardy anyway).

The stars of today's game were still 3 guards...Matthews, James and David Cubillan. James had a career high 10 assists and played in control much of the game until he went out late with leg cramps midway through the second half. Wes Matthews scored 20 points as did Cubillan, many on key three-pointers and clutch free throws in the last minute of play. Cubillan's 20 point effort set a new collegiate high, and included a perfect night from the line (8-8).

Once again, Pitt's Levance Fields was ineffective againt the Golden Eagles tallying five points on just 2-13 from the floor against MU's deep, athletic backcourt. Fields and fellow starting guard Antonio Graves combined to shoot 3-21 against MU tonight with just 2 assists.

Marquette seniors Mike Kinsella and Jamil Lott also gave some much needed lift to Tom Crean's depleted squad. Kinsella hit a 3-pointer early in the game, his first of his career. So two minutes later he decided he would do it again....swish. Todd Rosiak comments on the Kinsella magical final home game. Jamil Lott also added a bucket and a blocked shot in the first half.

Marquette will play either St. John's or UCONN in New York at 9:00pm ET next Wednesday. St. John's will play Providence at home on Sunday. If the Johnnies win, MU will play St. John's on their home court on Wednesday.

Since joining the Big East, Tom Crean's team has taken three of the four meetings against Jamie Dixon's Panthers.

Saturday also marked the 30th anniversary recognition of the 1977 NCAA Champion Marquette Warriors. The entire team returned, a little older and a few pounds heavier, but ready to add to a wonderful day in Milwaukee. As Bo Ellis said at halftime..."we will be Warriors forever." A record crowd of 19,021 were in attendance to see the victory and the re-union of the 1977 Warriors.

• Rosiak's article
• Pittsburgh Post Gazette Recap
• Steve Yanda from the MU Trib on winning without Jerel
  
• Paul Day recaps the game for the MU Trib
  
• Pittsburgh Tribune Review Recap
• AP recap of the game
• Boxscore
• Here is the PittBlather's open thread on the game -- these guys do a great job on their blog.
• A victory thread at MUScoop.
• Andrew Sharos recaps the win for Marquette Hoops.
  

Jerel McNeal is out of tonight's game...hurt thumb

Jerel McNeal apparently was hurt in a practice on Friday and is in a splint. He is on the bench in street clothes and will not play tonight. A huge loss for Marquette tonight. Their best defensive player and second leading scorer.

No word if he is out for the Big East Tournament. ESPN is reporting the injury is a sprain and McNeal will meet with team doctors and trainers again on Sunday to determine his availability in the next week.

MU's road just got even tougher.

MARQUETTE STUDENTS ROCK

HOLY S@!T!

I just plowed through my TiVo'd recording of ESPN Gameday.......wow, the MU students were FREAKIN' PHENOMENAL. The Bradley Center was positively rocking -- that's how a student section represents its team!

John Dodds has some details here. Kudos to the MU athletic department for marketing this opportunity so effectively!

WAY TO GO STUDENTS! BRING IT BIG TIME TONIGHT!!!!!!!!!!

Looks Like James McMahon touched the proverbial third rail

....and stirred the echoes of Warriors past. There are jinormous threads on the MU boards devoted to McMahon's 'recommendation' that a student should stop wearing a Native American headdress to MU basketball games. And now John McAdams is chronicling it all.

Want the capper? A grassroots group has emerged and pledged to wear headdresses to the game tonight -- if merely out of spite for McMahon's faux authority on this matter.

How ironic....by trying to muzzle this kid, McMahon might actually ensure that there is more Native American imagery in the crowd tonight than MU has seen in more than two decades. I am a 1991 graduate -- and I never saw Willie Wampum or any fan dressing in a headdress at a game. Tonight could be a first......time for TiVo.

Check these out:

• MUScoop thread on the subject
• Another MUScoop thread on the subject
• Marquette Hoops thread on this mess
• Another thread at Marquette Hoops

....and now for the Big Kahuna -- McAdams picks MU apart right here. Follow the links through his multiple posts on his blog.

Last Ticket

It's the last ticket in the pack.

As a season ticket holder, you await that day in October when the mailman drops off your season tickets. You're excited for the first couple of November games .. then slog through 5 games in 13 days. Puttin' on your gold, driving to the BC, finding parking, ringing out Ahoya.

Early December has the UW game, so you got that going for you. But then there's the long cold march through OOC country to the promised land, the Big East season.

Around January you start counting down thinking, man, only seven games left. Five now. Just two more games left.

And then it comes to this day -- when you tear off that last single ticket, leaving the cover and spline so empty and lonesome.

I admit we missed a couple this year, but my wife and 8 month old son (today) made it to nineteen. At three hours a pop, that's nearly 60 hours. Whew.

Let's go Warriors. Let's put that last ticket to good use!

Senior Night: Sit your butt down, win or lose.

This has been touched on below, but I think it deserves an entry to itself.

There's nothing, nothing that pisses me off more on Senior Night than when people leave the BC before the honoring the Seniors. I remember the triple OT loss in 2001 Senior Night vs. Louisville, and the sad rush of "fans" out the door before giving Brian Wardle his great due.

While it is very true that Jamil, Mike, and Craig haven't gotten lots of PT at Marquette, they've put in just as much time lifting, studying, shootin' and sweatin' as anyone else this year. They don't get lots of applause during games, they don't get much media attention, they just bust their butts for the betterment of the top 25 team you've been watching all year.

They're probably not getting a bobblehead next year, so sit your bottom down and give them their due, and enjoy your last 12 minutes in the Bradley Center until November.

Win, or lose.

FIRE UP MARQUETTE

Here's a rundown of Saturday's must-do items:


8am -- ESPN Gameday at the Bradley Center. It is free folks, so pack the house. The first 1,000 fans get one of these jolly golden t-shirts. MU will run shuttle buses from campus.

(after conclusion of Gameday .... commence with day-long party and inevitable liver abuse)

7pm -- enter the Bradley Center and put on the nifty 1977 blue commemorative t-shirt.


7:01 pm -- Suck in gut. Stand up straight, and try to locate Erin Andrews. If married, hide your wedding ring and maybe she'll meet you for a beer later.

8pm -- Yell like hell for the good guys as they take the court against the enemy.

9pm -- Honor the 1977 National Champions. Repeat. Honor the 1977 National Champions.

10pm -- Yell like hell for the good guys as they look to earn their 10th conference win.

10:01 pm - - Sit your butt down and watch the Senior Night ceremony. Enthusiastically cheer and for Jamil Lott, Mike Kinsella and Craig Kuphall. THANKS GUYS!

10:30 pm -- Resume partying and liver abuse while talking with buddies about how Erin Andrews will show up at the bar at any minute looking for you.

11:02pm -- The most recent conversation is stricken from your memory when you complete your first Jagerbomb.

***Can't make it to the game? Get with your local alums at one of the many National Marquette Day events around the country.

Congrats to Jerel McNeal

Tom Luicci of the Newark Star-Ledger voted McNeal to his 10-player first-team all Big East team. Well deserved!

I was disappointed to see that Luicci played the homer card and voted for Marquis Webb as the Big East's Defensive Player of the Year.

Bad call.

McNeal, with more steals (2.6 to 0.9) and rebounds (4.6 to 2.6) than Webb, was a much stronger candidate for that honor. ...add in McNeal's miraculous save at USF if you're not convinced he's a more viable choice (not to mention that McNeal made his all conference ballot and Webb did not)

Other categories of note:

POY - Jeff Green
FOY - Scottie Reynolds
COY - Mike Brey

Those three -- all solid choices.

Calling Uncle Mo'

When MU (22-8, 9-6) and Pitt (25-5, 12-3) renew their budding rivalry on Saturday night, they will do so with much at stake.

On Senior Night with a 10-win conference season within their grasp, the 1977 National Champions in the house, and Selection Sunday looming, the Marquette Golden Eagles have plenty of incentive this weekend. And don't forget - - with a win on Saturday, the Panthers will earn at least a share of the 2006-2007 Big East title. Oh, and this is a national TV game.

MU beat the Panthers in overtime 77-74 earlier this season, part of the team's fast start in the Big East. Yet since their sensational 6-2 start in conference play the Golden Eagles have been grounded for much of the second half of the season, losing four of their last five outings. Slumps can happen when you play one of the two toughest intra-conference schedules. Its time for good ol' Uncle Mo' to visit this young, talented team once again.

The team's inconsistency in conference play is personified by Dominic James. James has been both magic (see MU's win at Pitt) and tragic (see MU's loss at Georgetown) this year. The sophomore PG has only scored in double figures in three of his last seven games, and hasn't shot 50% from the field in a game since MU's win over Seton Hall back in January -- which happens to be the only game in which James made half his shots since early December. Its been a tough sophomore season in the Big East for Dominic James -- yet he is still playing a solid floor game as evidenced by his 1.8/1 A/TO ratio.

Still, James matches up well with the Panthers. In three career games against Pitt, James is averaging 18.3ppg, 4.6 apg, and 4 rpg. In MU's win at Pitt earlier this season, the Panthers' Levance Fields was overmatched against James, fouling out after scoring just two points.

MU's greatest advantage on Saturday night is its quick, athletic, fast backcourt -- the Panthers just don't have the same caliber of athlete at the guard positions. Of course, Pitt has that same physical advantage on the baseline with Aaron Gray, Levon Kendall, Sam Young, Tyrell Biggs and company. Although according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Pitt starting forward Levon Kendall did not go through a full practice yesterday because of a nagging turf toe injury, and his backup Sam Young is struggling with tendonitis in his knees. Both are expected to play tomorrow night against Marquette."

In his Q/A with Rosiak earlier this week, Crean noted that improved post defense begins with more appreciable backcourt pressure. TC's had plenty of time to focus on that and other gaps in his team's game. After a tough slog through the Big East, Crean's squad enjoyed a full week to prepare for the physical Panthers, time that bodes well for MU IMHO. The extra practice time came at an ideal time for a team that failed to slow down the inside game against teams with similar inside presence (Notre Dame and Georgetown).

Tipoff is scheduled for 8pm CST on ESPN.

MEDIA UPDATE

• John Keegan of the Marquette Tribune previews the season finale.
• The AP on Pitt's fight for a share of the Big East title.
• Here's the MUScoop info header for the game.
  
• Mike Bennett of the Richmond Palladium-Item delivers a column on James and MU.
• Panthers' beat reporter Ray Fittipaldo has an informative Q/A today.
• Rosiak blogs on MU's seniors as they prepare for Senior Night. Ouch. Worse, he ignores Craig Kuphall in his blog -- bogus! Craig is putting in just as much time and effort as the scholarship players and deserves the attention and appreciation as well. THANK YOU CRAIG KUPHALL!
• Marquette Hoops goes in-depth to preview the MU/Pitt rematch.
• PittLive with a profile of Panther's PF Tyrell Biggs.
  

Rosiak on James and the NBA

What a crazy odd time for Todd Rosiak to jump into the fray with an article about Dominic James considering a jump to the NBA.

......I thought MU had a very important nationally televised basketball game to play tomorrow evening against perhaps the Big East's best team. A game that could move MU to 10-6 in league play and perhaps rachet the squad up a seed or two when it comes to Selection Sunday.

James says all the right things in this ill-timed article -

"Right now, I'm just focusing on taking it one game at a time," James said. "And of course I'm trying to get my team as far as I can in the NCAAs because that will have an impact on what my decision is....but right now I plan on staying all four years."

...and admits that he's thought about going to the NBA

"Any player that's in the position to do that can be vulnerable to thinking about that," he said. "Possibly one year away your dream could come true, so it's impossible not to think about it. Right now that's not my concern. If that comes, then it comes."

I guess that's human nature. That talk kinda burns me jus a bit -- especially realizing that James played his best ball in November and December.

While Rosiak notes DJ's overall stats in the article, he fails to address the point guard's profound struggles in conference play where his production and effectiveness have been disappointing. James is averaging just 13.3 ppg on 34% shooting from the field (25% from deep) and 62% from the line in Big East games.

When the competition improved and the season became a grind, James became less productive. Given that MU lacks a consistent outside shooter in its starting backcourt and an intimidating presence on the baseline this is not really a surprise. Unlike during his banner freshman season, teams game plan for James this year -- and that's tough to overcome, particularly for a sophomore who is still rounding out his game.

But as we know, the NBA drafts on potential rather than production, so who knows what will happen in the next 90 days.

Still -- this would have been a better off-season story.

I thought MU had a big game tomorrow.

Recapping the 1977 Warriors

The Warriors ruled 1977.

Their release on an unsuspecting public was rather understated but soon word spread about the intensity of the bunch, its street-smart and aggressive leader, and the toughness that embodied the group. With their leader marked for elimination and their own institution's identity at risk, rival gangs united against the Warriors' cause.

Yet the group boldly took all all comers in pursuit of their destiny. A destiny of triumph, vindication and redemption.

From start to finish the Warriors captivated America before emerging as the unexpected champions - - against so many odds.

The team was pushed to the brink of madness as they fought to maintain unity through the disappointment of early losses. Some Warriors turned against one another, leading to an infamous locker room brawl late in the season.

Still, the Warriors overcame the setbacks, remained unified and earned more victories than defeats during their memorable series of battles that year.

Yet their work was not done. The Warriors had not secured their destiny, their new home turf.

As the gauntlet continued, the madness of the season intensified. The Warriors had near-elimination experiences against the Furies, the Hi-Hats, the Boppers, the Lizzies, the Turnbull AC's and the Gramercy Riffs before reaching their final destination. The opposition was most fierce in the closing moments when the good guys where challenged to a pair of memorable battles on the promised land for all to see.

The Warriors did not back down.

When foolishly challenged by an unworthy opponent with gimmicky weaponry and a nortorious baiting call, "Warriors, come out to play-i-ay!" -- play they did.

The renegade bunch turned the tables and rallied late to earn an emotional triump, forever solidifying the Warriors as 1977's most enduring phenomenon with a legacy that still captures the imagination three decades later.

This Saturday, let's honor the Warriors once again.

OK, OK......I know that the film was not released until 1979, but that timeline didn't work so well for the smartassery/sarcasm I had in mind this morning. And hey--the storylines are eerily similar :-)

New York Times launches college hoops blog

A big welcome to The Bracket.

(registration at the Times is free -- give it a shot).

Happy Birthday

My wife started casually singing Happy Birthday this morning.

To whom, I asked?

"It's Travis' birthday."

Diener's been off the team two seasons, and she's still got a thing for him.

So on his birthday, Cracked Sidewalks will give you a little TD update.

Same old same old, might be the summation. Diener, after having a great pre-season, has been on the pines more often than not.

His name has been bandied about for trades, but Orlando didn't see a trade that valued TD's services enough, and the trade deadline passed.

So Happy Birthday, Travis. For your birthday, my wife wishes you a trade to the Milwaukee Bucks and lots of PT.

Travis links:

• Q&A with Travis Feb 6- Fond du Lac Reporter
  
• #34 to hang from BC Rafters?
  
• travisdiener34.com
• Wikipedia Listing
• Get To Know Travis / NBA