Sometimes a big win can pump life into a team but not this Marq team. Since the Con game after they played a great first 1/2 against Cin they have hit a wall . They lost (IT)as a team in that second 1/2 of that game and limped into the S.Hall game as a dog. Vegas new something before that game and they know it now and what they know is reflected in this line. I don't know if it is mental or physical but this team needs a breather and they won't get it today. I'm either way off or right on. We'll see. Lay it, looking for a blow out !!!
This is the one: Marq @ w.virg
- Thread starter bryanz
- Start date
Will WVU get Pittsnogled?
Marquette?s Novak is tall, skinny and can drill the 3
? They aren?t exactly mirror images of each other, but Kevin Pittsnogle is enough like Steve Novak that Pittsnogle?s exploits in last year?s NCAA tournament kept Novak glued to his television screen.
?Oh, I watched every bit of it,?? Novak said. ?He?s like me, and you don?t see too many players like that.??
Today at the Coliseum, though, a sellout crowd will see two of them. When Marquette (12-4, 2-1 Big East) faces No. 16 West Virginia (11-3, 3-0) at 2:30 p.m., Novak and Pittsnogle might not turn out to be central figures involved, but they certainly won?t be far off.
After all, it?s not often that perhaps the two best shooters on the floor are a combined 13 feet, 9 inches tall and weigh 475 pounds.
On one end is West Virginia?s Pittsnogle, 6-11 and 255 pounds. On the other is Marquette?s Novak, 6-10 and 220. And while there will certainly be a few traditional matchups between the two under the basket, it?s what they will do far from it that makes them rare.
Pittsnogle is third in the Big East in 3-point field goal percentage. Novak is second in 3-pointers made.
Not bad for a couple of guys who in another era would have been stationed with their backs to the basket from an early age and never allowed to stray.
?Yeah, 20 or 30 years ago as a kid I would have been put with my back to the basket and told, ?You?re going to be a post player because you?re taller than everybody,? ?? Novak said. ?But I grew up in a basketball family. My dad was my high school coach. And he never pushed me that way. I?d be out there shooting by myself and the thing was that 3s were more fun than layups. I just always wanted to see how far I could shoot it from.??
Novak, like Pittsnogle, has become as adept at it as almost any player in the country, not just the ones who hover near the 7-foot mark. In Marquette?s first-ever Big East game last week at home against then-No. 2 Connecticut, the senior from Brown Deer, Wisc., obliterated the scoring record for players in their first Big East game (30) with 41 points and 16 rebounds in a 94-79 win.
Novak is a career 45.7 percent 3-point shooter who had six against both the Huskies and in Wednesday night?s 67-63 win at Seton Hall. And if that doesn?t illustrate what a consistent shooter he is, how about this: Novak has made 41-of-42 free throws this season, 92.5 percent for his career and until missing one in a game at Cincinnati last weekend had made 68 in a row dating back to last January. In other words, he?s missed one free throw in roughly the last year.
A natural shooter? Well, not necessarily.
?It?s definitely not natural. Whether you?re 5-foot-10 or 6-foot-10, in order to put the ball in the basket it takes work,?? said Novak, who averages 16.4 points this season. ?It?s something I?ve worked at and I?m sure it?s something [Pittsnogle has] worked at, too.??
Like Pittsnogle, though, Novak has heard criticism that he is one-dimensional, a tall guy who can shoot but not much else. And perhaps he was that way when he began his career at Marquette as a key freshman reserve on a team that included Dwayne Wade and Travis Diener and made it to the Final Four. Novak?s rebounding is still not anything special (5.8 per game), although he was one board away from his third straight double-double at Seton Hall. And he has blocked only six shots in his career and averages barely one assist per game.
But, like Pittsnogle, Novak has improved his inside game tremendously and is no longer someone defenses can simply ignore inside the 3-point line.
?He?s becoming so much more than a scorer. He?s becoming a complete player,?? Marquette coach Tom Crean said. ?Certainly shooting is something he?s always worked very hard at and become one of the best around, but he?s gained so much more in his mid-range game, off the dribble and getting to the rim.??
Novak takes pride in that, too, although he knows that his shot is still the best part of his game.
?A lot of big guys, when you see them shoot like that, you characterize them as soft,?? Novak said. ?But when you can do it better than a lot of the smaller guys, you earn respect from that.??
Briefly
Prior to today?s game, the school will raise the 2005 NCAA tournament Elite Eight banner in the Coliseum.
Marquette is 2-1 against West Virginia. The only game in Morgantown was a 78-76 WVU win during the 1994-95 season. West Virginia coach John Beilein has never faced Marquette or Crean. West Virginia leads the nation in fewest fouls per game, is second in fewest turnovers and 3-point goals and fourth in assists.
Pittsnogle ranks third in the Big East in scoring (20.2) and Mike Gansey is sixth (18.7).
Behind Novak, Marquette?s next two top scorers are freshmen guards Dominic James (13.8) and Jerel McNeal (11.4). A third freshman guard, Wesley Matthews, is out indefinitely with a stress fracture in his foot.
West Virginia?s next game is Tuesday night at home against Providence before leaving for three games ? next Saturday at UCLA, Jan. 25 against Marshall in Charleston and Jan. 29 against St. John?s at Madison Square Garden.
Marquette?s Novak is tall, skinny and can drill the 3
? They aren?t exactly mirror images of each other, but Kevin Pittsnogle is enough like Steve Novak that Pittsnogle?s exploits in last year?s NCAA tournament kept Novak glued to his television screen.
?Oh, I watched every bit of it,?? Novak said. ?He?s like me, and you don?t see too many players like that.??
Today at the Coliseum, though, a sellout crowd will see two of them. When Marquette (12-4, 2-1 Big East) faces No. 16 West Virginia (11-3, 3-0) at 2:30 p.m., Novak and Pittsnogle might not turn out to be central figures involved, but they certainly won?t be far off.
After all, it?s not often that perhaps the two best shooters on the floor are a combined 13 feet, 9 inches tall and weigh 475 pounds.
On one end is West Virginia?s Pittsnogle, 6-11 and 255 pounds. On the other is Marquette?s Novak, 6-10 and 220. And while there will certainly be a few traditional matchups between the two under the basket, it?s what they will do far from it that makes them rare.
Pittsnogle is third in the Big East in 3-point field goal percentage. Novak is second in 3-pointers made.
Not bad for a couple of guys who in another era would have been stationed with their backs to the basket from an early age and never allowed to stray.
?Yeah, 20 or 30 years ago as a kid I would have been put with my back to the basket and told, ?You?re going to be a post player because you?re taller than everybody,? ?? Novak said. ?But I grew up in a basketball family. My dad was my high school coach. And he never pushed me that way. I?d be out there shooting by myself and the thing was that 3s were more fun than layups. I just always wanted to see how far I could shoot it from.??
Novak, like Pittsnogle, has become as adept at it as almost any player in the country, not just the ones who hover near the 7-foot mark. In Marquette?s first-ever Big East game last week at home against then-No. 2 Connecticut, the senior from Brown Deer, Wisc., obliterated the scoring record for players in their first Big East game (30) with 41 points and 16 rebounds in a 94-79 win.
Novak is a career 45.7 percent 3-point shooter who had six against both the Huskies and in Wednesday night?s 67-63 win at Seton Hall. And if that doesn?t illustrate what a consistent shooter he is, how about this: Novak has made 41-of-42 free throws this season, 92.5 percent for his career and until missing one in a game at Cincinnati last weekend had made 68 in a row dating back to last January. In other words, he?s missed one free throw in roughly the last year.
A natural shooter? Well, not necessarily.
?It?s definitely not natural. Whether you?re 5-foot-10 or 6-foot-10, in order to put the ball in the basket it takes work,?? said Novak, who averages 16.4 points this season. ?It?s something I?ve worked at and I?m sure it?s something [Pittsnogle has] worked at, too.??
Like Pittsnogle, though, Novak has heard criticism that he is one-dimensional, a tall guy who can shoot but not much else. And perhaps he was that way when he began his career at Marquette as a key freshman reserve on a team that included Dwayne Wade and Travis Diener and made it to the Final Four. Novak?s rebounding is still not anything special (5.8 per game), although he was one board away from his third straight double-double at Seton Hall. And he has blocked only six shots in his career and averages barely one assist per game.
But, like Pittsnogle, Novak has improved his inside game tremendously and is no longer someone defenses can simply ignore inside the 3-point line.
?He?s becoming so much more than a scorer. He?s becoming a complete player,?? Marquette coach Tom Crean said. ?Certainly shooting is something he?s always worked very hard at and become one of the best around, but he?s gained so much more in his mid-range game, off the dribble and getting to the rim.??
Novak takes pride in that, too, although he knows that his shot is still the best part of his game.
?A lot of big guys, when you see them shoot like that, you characterize them as soft,?? Novak said. ?But when you can do it better than a lot of the smaller guys, you earn respect from that.??
Briefly
Prior to today?s game, the school will raise the 2005 NCAA tournament Elite Eight banner in the Coliseum.
Marquette is 2-1 against West Virginia. The only game in Morgantown was a 78-76 WVU win during the 1994-95 season. West Virginia coach John Beilein has never faced Marquette or Crean. West Virginia leads the nation in fewest fouls per game, is second in fewest turnovers and 3-point goals and fourth in assists.
Pittsnogle ranks third in the Big East in scoring (20.2) and Mike Gansey is sixth (18.7).
Behind Novak, Marquette?s next two top scorers are freshmen guards Dominic James (13.8) and Jerel McNeal (11.4). A third freshman guard, Wesley Matthews, is out indefinitely with a stress fracture in his foot.
West Virginia?s next game is Tuesday night at home against Providence before leaving for three games ? next Saturday at UCLA, Jan. 25 against Marshall in Charleston and Jan. 29 against St. John?s at Madison Square Garden.
What a day and Syracuse won. Did not see the game ,how did they look,Looked @ the box. Out rebounded Cin 2 to 1 ?
bryanz...great call.Played WV because of your post.I'm so busy doing other games I'm ignoring the BE except for the Johnnies.Thank you.
Cuse had a nice win.I think Cinncy losing Kirkland for the yr is going to hurt them bigger then everyone thinks.I stayed away from that game but was leaning towards the Cuse.
One tough thing about capping teams with a 3 pt weapon is "if there on". Mac gets hot and the Cuse wins big.[I didn't see boxscore yet]
It's like the other nite with Marist-Siena.Whittington lyr led the nation in 3 pt % and was tops in a few more.He's off this yr.Then he goes up towards you in Albany and hits 8-8 from the 3.And of course I have Siena.
Marist plays Rider today.If Whitington is on today Foxes win by 8-10.Who knows.
Again nice job.Thanks. We had 4 inches of snow last nite and it was 50 degrees yest.
Cuse had a nice win.I think Cinncy losing Kirkland for the yr is going to hurt them bigger then everyone thinks.I stayed away from that game but was leaning towards the Cuse.
One tough thing about capping teams with a 3 pt weapon is "if there on". Mac gets hot and the Cuse wins big.[I didn't see boxscore yet]
It's like the other nite with Marist-Siena.Whittington lyr led the nation in 3 pt % and was tops in a few more.He's off this yr.Then he goes up towards you in Albany and hits 8-8 from the 3.And of course I have Siena.
Marist plays Rider today.If Whitington is on today Foxes win by 8-10.Who knows.
Again nice job.Thanks. We had 4 inches of snow last nite and it was 50 degrees yest.
bryanz, forgot to give you your props for this call yesterday. nice job. :clap: you swayed me to make a play on wv, so thank you. 
