Ever since April 1, 2008, Marquette Basketball fans have been looking for some positive news. Tom Crean’s exodus early last April set a bad tone throughout campus as many students were skeptical to endure a setback that usually comes with a new head coach.
As Dwayne Wade says in his new Converse commercial, “the best thing about (basketball) is that every season is a new start.” And despite the criticism that the Marquette program received over the hiring of Buzz Williams, the Marquette faithful still owe Williams a fair chance.
The Buzz Williams era begins Saturday, November 8 at 1 p.m. in the form of an exhibition matchup against Colorado State University-Pueblo. Like most college basketball powerhouses, Marquette has stacked their early season schedule with cupcake teams.
With all due respect to CSU Pueblo, this is exactly the type of game Marquette wants. They can afford to go out and try new lineups, plays and sets in a game setting that cannot be replicated in practice. These early season matchups are a nice confidence booster as well.
So who is CSU-Pueblo? First off, the Thunderwolves as they are called, come from the Rocky Mountain Area Conference, out of the NCAA Division II. They are coached by Patrick Eberhart, who is in his fourth year at the helm. As if Eberhart’s crew being from NCAA Division II is not enough, Marquette players must be relishing the opportunity to take on a team that finished with a 10-17 record last season.
Like Marquette has McNeal, James and Matthews, CSU Pueblo still has its share of feature players. Rome Smith, a 6-foot-3-inch 200 pound guard is the man to watch for next Saturday. According to the CSU-Pueblo athletic site, Smith led the team with 13.1 points per game last season. He also shot 40.1 percent from beyond the arc.
In the frontcourt, the Thuderwolves are led by Senior Jake Trahern. According to his player bio on the CSU athletic site, Trahern was former Mr. Basketball in Colorado and State Tournament MVP in 2004. Last season the 6-foor-9-inch forward averaged 11.6 points per contest, while accumulating 34 blocks throughout the season. Along with Smith, Trahern hopes to form a great inside-outside combination that Coach Eberhart can count on.
Despite the talent disparity, this is not a game that Marquette should take lightly. Even though this is just an exhibition matchup, how the team responds will set the tone for the next few games.
True, there is no secret as to who is favored to win the game, but a sloppy showing for Marquette could result in a loss further down the road. For comparisons sake, nobody wants to be the next Michigan and lose to an Appalachian State team in the 2007 NCAA Football season.
Every coach, including Buzz Williams, should assure their teams that an upset cannot and will not happen.
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