To the victors go the spoils, so Cracked Sidewalks has their take on the game. It’s easy to forget, as we get so wrapped up in what Pitt didn’t do, that Marquette has players that did plenty to give their team a chance. As I pointed out previously, Marquette grabbed 10 offensive rebounds in the game. All in the second half. As much as that can be blamed on Pitt players not doing a good job boxing out — and arguably that was where Kendall was missed with foul trouble — Marquette players did a great job of following the shot and not giving up on a possession until the ball was either in the basket or Pitt had secured it. They were admirably tenacious on offense.
If you think I’m harping too much on the rebounding, it’s just that is supposed to be Pitt’s big strength, and it is supposed to help offset weaker areas for Pitt like consistent free throw shooting.
“We put ourselves in a position to win, but it just came down to free throws. There is such a fine line between a win and a loss. It would have been good if it would have went in, but we need to play better defense through the game instead of put our selves in that position.”
“It is just a different deal. They set better screens. For whatever it was, we were running into the screens.”
“It was two good teams playing well. They made free throws, we need to win the rebounding battle more than we did. Have to do a better job of avoiding them. We need to cut down on turnovers, we made a few too many travels tonight. When they shoot the ball well they become harder to guard. They played great and did a good job. THey are well coached and would never count them out.”
Part of why Marquette shot so well in the first half was that they were doing a great job at setting solid screens. Something Coach Tom Crean must have noted against Providence. In the second half, Pitt’s strong bodies started wearing on them, and the picks were not holding so well. That led to a lot lower percentage of field goals for Marquette as shots weren’t so open.
For Marquette, the overarching storyline is about back-to-back wins within 48 hours over top-20 teams. Something any coach of a NCAA Tournament bound team wants to be able to remind his players and increase the confidence of being able to win.
Just two days after knocking off No. 17 Georgetown, they upended the ninth-ranked Pittsburgh Panthers, 84-82, on Saturday night in front of a record crowd of 19,007 at the Bradley Center that was in full throat and hungry for some payback over a Big East opponent that’s fast becoming a new rival.
“A great exclamation point on one of those weeks that guys won’t forget any time soon,” Marquette coach Tom Crean said. “Starting it with a loss on the road (at Rutgers), coming back, getting better in the practices. Preparation from the coaches and the players was fantastic.
“But really, this game came down to playing with a lot of heart, a lot of toughness. Both teams did, but we were able to come away with it, which is a great feeling for everybody in the locker room.”
For the Pittsburgh media, it is about the creation of a rivalry.
A rivalry is born.
Three weeks after Pitt outmuscled Marquette in a six-point victory at home, the teams waged another ferocious physical battle Saturday night before 19,007, the largest crowd to watch a college basketball game in Wisconsin.
This time, Marquette found a way to please its home fans, emerging with a wild 84-82 victory over No. 9 Pitt.
Steve Novak scored 27 points to lead Marquette (18-8, 7-5 Big East), which defeated its second nationally ranked team in three days and third of the season.
Pitt (20-4, 8-4) had defeated Marquette, 77-71, on Jan. 28 at Petersen Events Center in a game that infuriated Golden Eagles coach Tom Crean because of an injury suffered by prized freshman Dominic James on a play Crean claimed was a blatant no-call against Pitt.
Personally, I think it’s a little early to make such declarations, but then I’m conservative in that. Rivalries need more than one season of meetings. Maybe in another year or two — depending on whether the teams get another home-and-home set.
I will give one exception to what I just said. What could make this a rivalry after only one year is if the teams meet in the Big East Tournament for ostensibly the rubber match. Home, away and neutral in one season might just accelerate things to full rivalry in only a year.
Someone saw a different game than what I saw.
Pitt wanted to play physical with Marquette. Marquette wanted to play finesse.
In the end, finesse won out. Marquette exposed Pitt’s perimeter defense and won, 84-82, at the Bradley Center.
Marquette converted 10 3-pointers and made more than half of its shots from the field. Steve Novak led the Golden Eagles with 27 points and made five 3-pointers. Dominic James had 16 points and Wesley Matthews 13.
Pitt was led by Carl Krauser’s 18 points. Levance Fields had 14. The Panthers had to play much of the game without junior center Aaron Gray, who was in foul trouble for most of the night. Gray had just eight points and missed two free throws with 24 seconds left that would have given Pitt the lead.
The rest of the story is just a game recap, but I’m still puzzling over the “finesse” claim. I saw a strong, determined Marquette team that went toe-to-toe with Pitt. A team that was perfectly willing to drive the lane, penetrate, go for rebounds. The set solid screens and good picks. Just tough and hard play. Where was the finesse?
At the half, Marquette retired the jersey of Maurice Lucas. Lucas was a Pittsburgh native who played at Marquette from 72-74 before going pro.
“It’s very nice. It’s a great feeling and it helped complete the cycle of basketball for me,” said Lucas, who also was celebrating his birthday yesterday. “I didn’t realize it wasn’t retired because I’ve been in the Hall of Fame here for so long.”
To his credit, Lucas eventually got his degree from Marquette in 1982. He is presently an assistant coach for the Portland Jailblazers.
Keith Wehmeyer has plenty of thoughts on the game, as well. Definitely a full read.
