Butler Basketball: Keys to success at Marquette in 2019-20

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - JANUARY 24: Head coach LaVall Jordan of the Butler Bulldogs celebrates in the second half of a game against the Marquette Golden Eagles at Hinkle Fieldhouse on January 24, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Butler defeated Marquette 89-85 in overtime. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

4 of 5

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – JANUARY 24: Baldwin of the Bulldogs shoots. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

3. Can Baldwin strike again?

Kamar Baldwin basically single-handedly pushed Butler to victory over Marquette a couple of weeks ago. He was absolutely spectacular in that game as a mid-range killer in the pick-and-roll while quite simply willing the team to a late lead and then continued his hot shooting into overtime. Baldwin might not receive the same national attention as Marquette’s star (Howard) but he is a pretty darn good player in his own right.

While Marquette will surely have a better gameplan to stop Baldwin in this matchup, it’s reasonable to question how strong that gameplan will actually be. This is due to the fact that the Golden Eagles have consistently allowed opposing guards to give them trouble over the past few weeks. It wasn’t all that surprising that Baldwin was able to catch fire in the last meeting of these squads.

As a bit of background, here is how star guards have performed against Marquette as of late (last six games only):

McClung + Mosely (GU): 35 points on 12-for-23
Heron + Dunn (SJU): 30 points on 11-for-28
Baldwin + McDermott (BU): 47 points on 15-for-33
Scruggs + Goodin (Xavier): 31 points on 11-for-21
Moore + Coleman-Lands (DePaul): 34 points on 14-for-28

The Golden Eagles have certainly been playing well as of late but that has mainly been due to their offense. There are still plenty of concerns with their defensive play and that opens a door for Baldwin to ignite again.

With Thompson back on the court, Baldwin is back to playing his true position of shooting guard. He is able to conserve his energy a bit as a result and that makes him especially dangerous. Baldwin has shown up in big moments time and time again this season – could he show out again in Milwaukee?