Jamil Wilson, O-Boards & Free Throws equal a Marquette Victory

Marquette had a week off before heading to New Jersey to play Seton Hall. Golden Eagles had been flip-flopping wins and losses more than a local politician. Somehow, Marquette found themselves in the middle of the Big East which is a current trainwreck, but they could develop some separation from some of the others. Marquette rebounded from 20 bad minutes of basketball to win 77-66 with Jamil Wilson's biggest effort of the season along with Golden Eagles cleaning up on the glass and the free throw line yet concerns are still there about this team.

Other than Jake Thomas, Wilson suffered the most criticism of any Marquette player this season. Reason being is most Marquette fans put him on a pedestal assuming he would make the 'senior leap' as we have seen with Golden Eagles players before. This did not happen with Wilson. He is one of the most athletic players in Buzz Williams' tenure, but at the same time, one of the most frustrating players to watch. Wilson stepped up in a major way on Tuesday night.

Wilson came out firing against the Pirates nailing four straight threes and another basket having 14 quick points. He is only a 32 percent 3-point shooter so it came with much surprise when Wilson made it rain out there like he had unlimited dollar bills. He finished the game with 25 points and 10 rebounds notching his second double-double of the season. Wilson seemed to be involved with the offense more so than other games of remembrance. For the first time this season, it felt like the offense actually ran through him. This could be a very encouraging sign moving forward with Marquette. In the last two games, Wilson is averaging 21 points and eight rebounds a game. Hopefully, this is not just another trick by the magician.

What does not get talked about much is how Marquette really is not a good free throw shooting team. For the second, they rank tied for 202nd by shooting 68 percent from the charity stripe. I do not think there have been many games where Marquette lost the game from the line, yet still, it is an elephant in the room for this squad. They did a great job Tuesday night making 30 of 34 free throws. Sometimes, the difference from a game being a 10 point advantage to a nail-biter finish is free throws. Further, Marquette going to the line 34 times is a great thing. They shot only 14 threes and got to the line 34 times; this should be the prototype for this team.

Marquette had their own issues with giving up offensive rebounds, but last night, they were the time giving it to the opposition. One of the big reasons the Golden Eagles won this game was their ability to clean up around the glass. Chris Otule, Davante Gardner and Wilson all pulled down three or more offensive rebounds providing another offensive opportunity for Marquette which they usually converted on with 14 second-chance points. Additionally, Seton Hall only had three offensive rebounds and only had 19 for the game. I hope the Golden Eagles big men and the whole team watch this tape seeing how well they can rebound game in, game out.

While it was great to see Marquette fight back and get a big win, there were still some noticeable concerns with the Golden Eagles.  Seton Hall shot 53 percent from the field, and at certain points of this game, Pirates were shooting around 60 percent. If it were not for the free throws and offensive rebounds, Marquette could have gotten wiped out. Additionally, Seton Hall made 10 threes including five of them from Brian Oliver, the second-best shooter in the Big East. Oliver found himself open more times than not. Golden Eagles need to find a way to be better perimeter defenders. I do not know if this starts with who plays at guard position or what, but it might be Marquette's biggest defect this season.

Marquette has now won two straight games. They win another game, it will be a winning streak. They have happened before. It will not be easy taking on Xavier. Golden Eagles will be tied for third in the Big East, and the conversation about the bubble can start again. But until then, Marquette is still on the outside looking in but another win continues to give everyone hope.

Charlie.

Five Ways to Improve Marquette Basketball

Seton Hall-Marquette game really summed up the season for this Golden Eagles team. It really did show a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde performance from this team with a great first half to have a putrid second half almost costing this team a home victory against the Pirates. Honestly, if this game went for five more minutes, there is no doubt in my mind that Marquette loses this basketball game. So here is the question that probably cannot be answered, 'How do we get the Marquette from the first half all the time?' I am going to attempt to make five suggestions.

1.) 3-pointers are not friends of Marquette - For the last two years, Marquette cannot shoot from the outside. They had a good night at Xavier where they made six threes on 13 attempts. That is a good night shooting from the outside for Marquette's standards. They really should only shoot about that total give or take for most of the games. Golden Eagles shot 10 threes in the second half and missed them all. Is there any other reason why this team nearly lost the game?  Nope. That is unacceptable for this team. Golden Eagles are their best when they are striking towards the basket and making plays rather standing around the outside trying to make something happen. 

2.) Jake Thomas experiment needs to end - I have no idea what's happening here with Thomas. I cannot explain it. My buddy and biggest Badger homer I know, Doz, asked me at the bar Saturday 'What's up with Jake Thomas getting all these minutes, I do not know if he plays at all on the worst Bo Ryan Badgers team.' When your Wisconsin friends are saying things like that, it probably needs to come to an end. Thomas is providing this team with nothing playing 30 minutes a game. He had open looks from 3-point land where is his quote 'specialty' and Thomas clanked all of them. FOX Sports analyst Kevin O'Neil basically called him useless, but he said it in a more polite manner. Marquette has too much talent on this roster to keep trotting out Thomas for more than 20 minutes a night. Further Thomas' effectiveness might be better out there for a shorter period of time instead because he spends a ton of energy on defense due to his lack of prowess on that end.   

3.) Todd Mayo might becoming a star - Am I getting a little Jon Gruden here?  Yeah I am. Do I trust Mayo will stay the course? Not really, no, I think he is on his final chance with the program and university but then again, I thought that last year around this team. In the last five games, Mayo has been a double-digit scorer for this team with him playing really efficiently and not relying on his 3-point shot which is truly important to Mayo's development. He made nine free throws on Saturday against Seton Hall having 19 points in total meaning he is attacking the lane. Now, Mayo should be starting, but I like to think he is one of those Manu Ginobli type meaning he prefers to come off the bench. If it is not the latter, Mayo should be starting for the rest of the year without question. 

4.) Davante Gardner needs to be a rebounding machine - These last two reasons will be me banging a drum from a couple recaps I have had in the last couple of weeks. Gardner had five rebounds on Saturday against Seton Hall bringing his five game average to a sparkling 3.8 which would be good if he played point guard. But Gardner is a power forward meaning he needs to be around the six to eight rebounds per game. Marquette is not going to be beat some of the better teams in the Big East if Gardner is only pulling down only four rebounds a game. I honestly believe this is complete laziness from his end. The man can put his ass into anyone, and get a rebound or at the very least, get a foul out of the opposing team. It should be easy for Gardner to grab five rebounds, and it should not be too  much to ask for him to get close to 10. 

5.) Jamil Wilson cannot be a magician - The disappearing act from Wilson is something I have only seen from one player in recent memory, Wisconsin's Marcus Landry. In his senior year, Landry had the same sort of expectations that Wilson had when the season began. Wilson had the first half that I think we as Marquette fans expected all season then he disengaged from the offense in the second half leading to Wilson only having 16 points rather than a 20 or 25 point afternoon when he started the game off with 12 points in the first half. Additionally, Wilson had only his second double-double of his career which is stunning to think about given his size and stature. Jamil needs to be more than just a role player. Landry never got past that, and my biggest fear is Wilson will remain status quo.

This Marquette team still has a lot of work, but a win is a win. They now get a week off before heading out for a road trip to Butler and Georgetown in two games in three days. Both games are entirely important to Marquette's dimming tournament hopes. Let's hope Marquette is not okay with 'just winning' this team and staying the course because if they are, this team is doomed.

Charlie.