Marquette Basketball: Three keys for game against Creighton

Marquette basketball has been up and down in Big East play, but the Golden Eagles still have a chance to go dancing with a win on Saturday.

Marquette basketball is officially the Lucy to its fan base’s Charlie Brown. Every time fans are ready to punt on any NCAA Tournament hopes, the Golden Eagles drag them right back with a gutsy win.

After beating then no. 13 Seton Hall at home by 20 in January, Marquette fans were making road trip plans to tournament sites. But then four straight losses, three of which came at home, completely soured the team’s outlook. A win at Seton Hall provided a brief respite, but then a loss at St. John’s sent fans spiraling back to square one. The last three games – a chaotic comeback at Creighton, a horrific loss at DePaul, and a blown lead-turned-big rally-turned-OT win at Georgetown – have done nothing to soothe the nerves in Milwaukee. But here we are, and Marquette (17-12, 8-9) enters Senior Day as a projected Dayton team with nearly a 50 percent chance at earning a tourney bid.

Creighton represents another ‘Quadrant 2’ opportunity at home for the Golden Eagles, and a chance to grab a first round bye at next week’s Big East tournament. Marquette currently owns an RPI of 64 and a SOS of 28, with a 4-7 Q1 record and a 3-3 Q2 slate (Marquette is 10-2 against Q3 and Q4 teams).

A win over the Blue Jays on Saturday would give Marquette season sweeps of Seton Hall and Creighton with another win at bubble foe Providence in January. Toss in several potential quality opponents in the conference tournament, and Marquette will have plenty of chances to boost an already solid resume.

But that’s all provided the Golden Eagles take care of business on Saturday in the program’s final game at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. Here are three keys for Marquette this weekend.