2011 Marquette Golden Eagles Basketball
Written by James Zerfoss - Google +
2010-11 Results:
Overall: 22-15
Big East: 9-9
Conference Tournament: Lost in the first round of the Big East Conference tournament
Postseason: Lost in the Sweet 16
Buzz Williams guided the Golden Eagles to a 22-15 record and into the NCAA Tournament for a seventh straight year. Marquette tied for ninth in the Big East conference but reached the Sweet 16. With Darius Johnson-Odom, Jae Crowder, and Jamil Wilson leading the way Marquette is gunning for another deep run into the NCAA tournament.
While Marquette struggled at times last year, finishing 9-9 in the Big East, when it came to tournament time the team stepped up its game and won a pair of games before losing to North Carolina 81-63.
Marquette ranked 2nd in the Big East in scoring last year and fourteenth in scoring defense. Expectations are high for the this year but to make another deep run in the NCAA tournament they need to improve on a defense that was one of the worst in the Big East Conference last year. The Golden Eagles especially struggled guarding teams inside the paint.
Roster
Returning Starters
Darius Johnson-Odom
Jae Crowder
Chris Otule
Other Returning Players
Davante Gardner
Vander Blue
Junior Cadougan
Jamail Jones
Newcomers
Todd Mayo
Derrick Wilson
Juan Anderson
Jamil Wilson
Head Coach
Buzz Williams
Key Losses
The Golden Eagles lost two starters in Jimmy Butler and Dwight Buycks. Butler averaged 15.7 points per game and Buycks played the point. Three role players are also gone.
2011-12 Preview
With a strong non-conference schedule the Golden Eagles have an excellence chance of making their seventh consecutive NCAA tournament appearance and building on last year’s Sweet 16 appearance. Last year the Golden Eagles relied on Jimmy Butler to get the offense started. This year Marquette has the added luxury of having three players who can step up at any given time and score in forwards Jamil Wilson, Jae Crowder, and guard Darius Johnson-Odom.
Coach Buzz Williams did an excellent job in landing Crowder from a junior college. Last year Crowder lived up to his hype averaging 11.8 points and 6.8 rebounds. In order for Marquette to do well in the Big East he will need to stay out of foul trouble and improve his presence on the defensive end of the floor.
Backcourt
Johnson-Odeom will likely be Marquette’s number one scorer after averaging 15.8 points per game and knocking down 71 trays last year. That was good enough to earn him second team All-Big East. He will need to provide leadership in the backcourt and step up his defense to help improve the Golden Eagle’s defense that allowed opponents to shot 50.8% from 2-point range.
Junior Cadougan will likely be the point guard. He will look to be the play maker that the Golden Eagles didn’t have last year. If he can improve his shot, he will get many open looks due to defenses emphasizing stopping Crowder and Johnson-Odom. Cadougan will look to penetrate whenever possible to open things up for the Golden Eagle’s big time shooters.
Frontcourt
Crowder and Wilson who transferred from Oregon and had to sit out last season will provide the Golden Eagles with a strong front court presence. Wilson used his redshirt year to add bulk to his 6-7, 220-pound frame.
Chris Otule will play center for Marquette with sophomore Davante Gardner backing him up. Otule provides the Golden Eagles with the inside presence they need but only averaged 3.6 rebounds per game last year. These numbers will have to improve for Otule to fend off Gardner for playing time. Gardner is considered slow but is an average scorer from inside the paint.
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