NCAA Basketball: Michigan’s struggles, a sleeper pick and more weekly takeaways
By Brian Rauf
6) Marquette deserves more credit than they’re getting
The Golden Eagles are a top 10 team in the country and have one of the favorites to win National Player of the Year, yet you rarely hear much about them in the national conversation.
Why is that?
Marquette traditionally is a program that has flown under the radar. There’s a lot of history and prestige there, but they’re not a brand name. Because of that, most of the talk in the Big East centers around Villanova, which is to be expected given the fact that they’re the defending national champs.
Many also think there’s a bit of a fluky feel to this team because of blowout losses to Indiana and St. John’s, and there hasn’t been a real marquee win to offset those results.
I’m here to tell you that Marquette is no fluke. They rank in the top 40 nationally in both offensive and defensive efficiency to go along with a level of explosiveness many other teams can’t match – they’ve only been held below 70 points on two occasions.
While we all know about Howard, Sam and Joey Hauser both average double figures. Starting center Theo John also leads in the Big East in blocks. This team is far from just a one-man show, though Howard obviously elevates them.
Plus, those losses happened early in the season, as did wins over Louisville, Kansas State, and Wisconsin, all of which look really good right now.