Preview
As parity goes in the Big East, no team sits on the margin quite like Marquette. The Warriors' 12 Big East games have been settled by a net total of 20 points and just two defensive rebounds. This is a team which beat Villanova and lost to St. John's seven days later.
Marquette won of three of four in mid-January but enters Verizon Center having dropped three of four, and is in need of a win to bolster a shaky RPI that, even at 15-9, is well below that of 13-12 Georgetown.
The Warriors have five players averaging in double figures and that gives coach Steve Wojciechowski a lot of options; however, it's not altogether clear who shows up to score on any given Saturday. Among the more consistent has been freshman Markus Howard, whose 23 points against Georgetown in December introduced him to Big East basketball. In games where he has played more than 15 minutes, Howard averages 18 points a game, and is coming off a 19 point effort in Marquette's narrow loss to Butler. Howard is shooting over 50 percent from the floor in Big East play, and his numbers are vital if the Warriors continue to struggle behind guard Jajuan Johnson (11.9 ppg), who has is 3 for 13 from the floor in his last three games despite a conference-high 20 points in his game with Georgetown. Also worth watching: 5-10 Andrew Rowsey (10.5 ppg), ranked among the top four in the conference in both two and three point shooting.
Up front, 6-6 Sam Hauser has been inconsistent offensively but a better defensive option, while 6-11 Luke Fischer has been stronger of late on offense but suspect on defensive drives. Fischer is the kind of center who, like Seton Hall's Angel Delgado, can wreak havoc on a soft Georgetown pivot--Fischer had 19 points and 13 rebounds in its game with Butler and owns a career high of 23 on the Hoyas in last March's defeat of the Hoyas in Milwaukee.
By offensive marks alone, Marquette ranks in the top three in many Big East categories, but suffers on defense, where it is seventh in rebounds, ninth in scoring defense and ninth in field goal defense. It's a telling statistic that the Warriors are just 6-9 when opponents score more than 65 points in a game--a low scoring game is key to its success.
By that metric, Georgetown was ripe for the taking in its last game. The Hoyas were held to just 66 points as L.J. Peak scored just four points in 22 minutes of play. Georgetown fell behind 11-0 in that game and never got within nine in the second half. While the Hoyas' end game basketball has been poor all season, Marquette's defensive porosity is actually a good thing for Georgetown, if it trusts in its big men down the stretch and does not rely on Peak and Pryor (the latter of which can struggle late in games) to drive the Hoyas home to the win.
Keys To The Game follow that from the first game between the teams:
Interior Defense: Govan & Hayes must contain Fischer inside. If Marquette is forced to play on the perimeter, the odds are against them.
Offensive Rebounding: Georgetown is fifth in the Big East in offensive rebounding, Marquette is sixth. Who wants it more?
Three Point Shooting: Marquette leads the league in three pointers, with three of the top six in the individual totals, but is last in three pointers allowed. GU gave up 10 threes to Marquette in December and must defend the arc with more intensity, but not fall into the trap which swallowed it whole versus Seton Hall.
Foul Trouble: Keeping Marquette off the line will be a priority given its strength at the line.
Andrew Rowsey: His shooting could be vital if Marquette catches fire from outside.
Marcus Derrickson: His numbers are way down and due for a reboot in this game.
A win won't punch Georgetown's ticket into March, but can help to rebuild some confidence as the team faces five winnable games before its regular season finale with Villanova on March 4.
As parity goes in the Big East, no team sits on the margin quite like Marquette. The Warriors' 12 Big East games have been settled by a net total of 20 points and just two defensive rebounds. This is a team which beat Villanova and lost to St. John's seven days later.
Marquette won of three of four in mid-January but enters Verizon Center having dropped three of four, and is in need of a win to bolster a shaky RPI that, even at 15-9, is well below that of 13-12 Georgetown.
The Warriors have five players averaging in double figures and that gives coach Steve Wojciechowski a lot of options; however, it's not altogether clear who shows up to score on any given Saturday. Among the more consistent has been freshman Markus Howard, whose 23 points against Georgetown in December introduced him to Big East basketball. In games where he has played more than 15 minutes, Howard averages 18 points a game, and is coming off a 19 point effort in Marquette's narrow loss to Butler. Howard is shooting over 50 percent from the floor in Big East play, and his numbers are vital if the Warriors continue to struggle behind guard Jajuan Johnson (11.9 ppg), who has is 3 for 13 from the floor in his last three games despite a conference-high 20 points in his game with Georgetown. Also worth watching: 5-10 Andrew Rowsey (10.5 ppg), ranked among the top four in the conference in both two and three point shooting.
Up front, 6-6 Sam Hauser has been inconsistent offensively but a better defensive option, while 6-11 Luke Fischer has been stronger of late on offense but suspect on defensive drives. Fischer is the kind of center who, like Seton Hall's Angel Delgado, can wreak havoc on a soft Georgetown pivot--Fischer had 19 points and 13 rebounds in its game with Butler and owns a career high of 23 on the Hoyas in last March's defeat of the Hoyas in Milwaukee.
By offensive marks alone, Marquette ranks in the top three in many Big East categories, but suffers on defense, where it is seventh in rebounds, ninth in scoring defense and ninth in field goal defense. It's a telling statistic that the Warriors are just 6-9 when opponents score more than 65 points in a game--a low scoring game is key to its success.
By that metric, Georgetown was ripe for the taking in its last game. The Hoyas were held to just 66 points as L.J. Peak scored just four points in 22 minutes of play. Georgetown fell behind 11-0 in that game and never got within nine in the second half. While the Hoyas' end game basketball has been poor all season, Marquette's defensive porosity is actually a good thing for Georgetown, if it trusts in its big men down the stretch and does not rely on Peak and Pryor (the latter of which can struggle late in games) to drive the Hoyas home to the win.
Keys To The Game follow that from the first game between the teams:
Interior Defense: Govan & Hayes must contain Fischer inside. If Marquette is forced to play on the perimeter, the odds are against them.
Offensive Rebounding: Georgetown is fifth in the Big East in offensive rebounding, Marquette is sixth. Who wants it more?
Three Point Shooting: Marquette leads the league in three pointers, with three of the top six in the individual totals, but is last in three pointers allowed. GU gave up 10 threes to Marquette in December and must defend the arc with more intensity, but not fall into the trap which swallowed it whole versus Seton Hall.
Foul Trouble: Keeping Marquette off the line will be a priority given its strength at the line.
Andrew Rowsey: His shooting could be vital if Marquette catches fire from outside.
Marcus Derrickson: His numbers are way down and due for a reboot in this game.
A win won't punch Georgetown's ticket into March, but can help to rebuild some confidence as the team faces five winnable games before its regular season finale with Villanova on March 4.
