Busting Brackets
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Big East Basketball: Creighton rises on top in latest 2020-21 power rankings

By Salvador Lopez

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JANUARY 22: Marcus Zegarowski #11 of the Creighton Bluejays in action in the game against the DePaul Blue Demons during the first half at Wintrust Arena on January 22, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JANUARY 22: Marcus Zegarowski #11 of the Creighton Bluejays in action in the game against the DePaul Blue Demons during the first half at Wintrust Arena on January 22, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /
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Marquette Basketball
Big East Basketball Marquette Golden Eagles (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

9. Marquette Golden Eagles (10-12, 6-10 Big East)

Remember when Marquette received 22 votes and was just outside the AP Top 25 Poll during the third week of the season?

After posting victories against Wisconsin and Creighton during a 10-day span in December, Marquette went into a major collapse for the rest of the season.

The worst loss for Marquette was when they were still on the bubble sitting with a record of 8-6. That was until January 23rd when the Golden Eagles lost to DePaul for the Blue Demons first conference victory of the season.

The loss against DePaul was the start of the Golden Eagles losing their last six of eight games, which has resulted in Marquette being bounced from the NCAA Tournament bubble.

The major problem for Marquette during their collapse has been their defense. The Golden Eagles have allowed multiple players to go off to score big numbers against them.

Dating back to January 23rd, these players have been able to post big numbers against Marquette:

DePaul: Charlie Moore (21 points) and Javon Freeman-Liberty (19 points)

Providence: David Duke (31 points, 4-8 3PT)

St. John’s: Julian Champagnie (22 points, 4-7 3PT)

Villanova: Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (27 points, 5-5 3PT)

Seton Hall: Jared Rhoden (20 points)

Butler: Chuck Harris (20 points 5-8 3PT)

The biggest weakness of Marquette that opponents have been able to take advantage of is making three-point shots on them. The Golden Eagles are currently around 295th nationally and last in the Big East allowing opponents to shoot 39.8 percent from the outside.

Not only has the defense been the concern, but also the offense for Marquette has struggled to score lately. In their last four victories, the Golden Eagles were able to score at least 70 points.

The lone bright and consistent spot of Marquette’s offense during the second-half of the season has been sophomore point guard, D.J. Carton (12.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 3.3 apg), who is averaging 15 points per game during his last five games.

However, the rest of the Golden Eagles roster has struggled to find offensive consistency. Marquette is averaging 68.8 points per game in conference play.

On Sunday, February 14th, Marquette scored the fewest points this season when they lost 57-51 against Seton Hall. The Golden Eagles went just 3-for-25 (12 percent) from three-point range, where their leading scorer entering Sunday, freshman forward, Dawson Garcia (12.6 ppg, 6.5 rpg), was held scoreless in 27 minutes.

The schedule for Marquette will continue to be challenging with the next three games on the road.

Marquette will have a rare non-conference matchup at North Carolina on national television on Wednesday. The Golden Eagles will then face UConn on the road on Saturday and will travel to take on DePaul on Tuesday, March 2nd. Marquette will wrap up the season hosting Xavier on Saturday, March 6th.

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