This will be the first in a series of posts on my first impressions of Big East teams. I saw Marquette play Wisconsin on Saturday, and here’s my thesis:

Marquette is a poor man’s 2005-2006 Villanova.

• Dominic James, Jerel McNeal, and Wesley Matthews remind me a lot of Kyle Lowry, Allan Ray, and Randy Foye (not necessarily in that order). Both triumverates are/were very quick and a bit undersized. They possess similar games: they either take you off the dribble straight to the hoop, or pull up for some ridiculous three that goes in more often than you think it ought to. Dominic James even wears the same type of elbow guard that Allan Ray did last year. Sometimes I think the Marquette guards get away with traveling when they execute a crossover dribble; I had the same qualm about Villanova last year.
• Their supporting casts are also very similar: Ousmane Barro and Dan Fitzgerald lack strong post moves but make up for it with a lot of grit, just like Dante Cunningham and Will Sheridan.
• Defense: Very tenacious — up in people’s faces, aggressively double-teaming, and waving arms and hands frenetically. Just like Villanova last year, they need this feverish pitch to overcome the size disadvantage. This was effective against some of Wisconsin’s players, who lost their composure and traveled or committed offensive fouls by using their elbows to get more personal space. At times, though, the defense seems out of control. In the first half against Wisconsin, the aggressive double-teaming hurt quite a bit, as Wisconsin held their composure and delivered quick, accurate passes to cutting players. The Marquette defense needs to work a bit more on rotating over after the double team.
• Offense: Few set plays, a lot of penetration off of high screens and kicking the ball out for a three, and just letting Dominic James do his thing. It’s not the most aesthetically-pleasing flavor of basketball (I’m a Pete Carril man), but it works well with this lineup. Dominic James is a major talent and reminds me of Allen Iverson. But I think Tom Crean lets his players stand and watch James too often. On Saturday, they only had 8 assists on 26 baskets (as opposed to Wisconsin’s 17 on 29).

It’s hard for me to get a read of Marquette, but I think they’re in for a rocky year. They could beat or lose to anybody in the country on a given night. They sure are exciting, though, and I look forward to some crazy games this year.

Oh, and one last thing: Ousmane Barro is going to break somebody’s face this year. Dude has some nasty elbows.

Categories: Commentary, donald, Marquette