Marquette-Minnesota Game Notes

Golden Eagles (1-0, 0-0 C-USA) vs. Minnesota Golden Gophers (1-0, 0-0 Big Ten)

Nov. 23, 1999 ? Game #2

Today?s Game Data

Site - Williams Arena (14,625)

Tipoff - 7:07 p.m.

Radio - Marquette Basketball Radio Network (Steve ?The Homer? True and George Thompson)

TV - MSC (Dick Bremer and Jim Dutcher)

Officials - Tom Rucker, Ted Hillary, Paul Janssen.

Probable Marquette Starters

G #10 - Cordell Henry (So., 5-9, 160, Chicago, Ill.)

11.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 2.0 spg

came off bench against Chicago State and had 11 points

G #4 - John Cliff (Sr., 6-2, 210, Decatur, Ill.)

14.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg

had 5 offensive rebounds vs. Chicago State

F #22 - Brian Wardle (Jr., 6-5, 212, Clarendon Hills, Ill.)

6.0 ppg. 3.0 rpg, 75.0 FT%

limited to 12 minutes against Chicago State after suffering mild concussion in first minute

F #43 - Oluoma Nnamaka (So., 6-7, 213, Uppsala, Sweden)

6.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 4.0 apg, 2.0 bpg, 2.0 spg

had game-high 4 assists in win over Chicago State

C #35 - John Mueller (Jr., 6-11, 231, Cedarburg, Wis.)

4.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg

grabbed eight rebounds versus Chicago State

About Marquette The Golden Eagles opened the 1999-2000 campaign with a 62-43 win over Chicago State Saturday afternoon in Milwaukee. It was the ninth straight victory in a season opener and the 42nd consecutive time Marquette has won its home opener.

Through one game the Golden Eagles are averaging 62.0 points and 54.0 rebounds a game. Marquette shot just 34.3% from the field, but played a stifling defense against the Cougars and limited them to 25.0% from the field.

John Cliff carried his hot hand from the exhibition season to the season opener. He had 14 points and grabbed seven rebounds, including five off the offensive glass.

Cordell Henry came off the bench and added 11 points, the only Golden Eagle other than Cliff to reach double figures. He did not start because he was under the weather. Oluoma Nnamaka had a solid all-around performance with six points, nine rebounds, a game-high four assists, two blocks and two steals.

Brian Wardle suffered a mild concussion in the first minute of the game and sat out the rest of the first period. He returned to play 11 minutes in the second half and scored six points and grabbed three rebounds. He connected on the only three-pointer he tried after going 0-7 in two exhibition games.

Marquette got two strong performances from its bench. John Polonowski played 23 minutes and had six points, two rebounds and four rejections. Jon Harris played 20 minutes and grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds, five coming off the offensive glass.

Marquette Head Coach Tom Crean First-year head coach Tom Crean was named Marquette?s head coach on March 30, 1999. He is in his first season as a head coach after serving as an assistant for 10 seasons. His coaching resum? includes stops at Michigan State (1989-90), Western Kentucky (1990-94), Pittsburgh (1994-95) and most recently again at Michigan State (1995-99).

He is a 1989 graduate of Central Michigan. Crean is assisted by Tim Buckley, Dwayne Stephens and Darrin Horn.

Tom Crean?s Marquette Record 1-0/1st season

Tom Crean?s Career Record 1-0/1st season

About Minnesota

Like Marquette, the Golden Gophers opened the season with a home victory - a 90-62 thumping of UT-Arlington on Nov. 20.

Minnesota shot 47.5% from the field and held UTA to 33.3%, including 28.6% in the second period. The Golden Gophers won the rebounding battle by a 52-40 margin.

Dusty Rychart posted a double-double with 22 points and 13 rebounds He shot 10-14 from the field and six of his rebounds came off the offensive glass. John-Blair Bickerstaff added 15 rebounds and six assists. Kevin Burleson came off the bench to chip in 16 points. Joel Przybilla, who ranked eighth nationally in blocked shots last season, rejected nine shots Saturday afternoon.

Minnesota Head Coach Dan Monson Like Crean, Dan Monson is in his first season with his current team. His career record is 53-17 and spans three seasons.

Monson compiled a 52-17 record in two seasons at Gonzaga. Last year?s team was 28-7 and advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. Ironically, the Bulldogs knocked out Minnesota, 75-63, in first-round action.

Monson is a 1985 graduate of Idaho.

The Marquette-Minnesota Series These two teams have met 31 times and the Golden Gophers hold a 17-14 lead. Minnesota enjoys a 12-4 advantage in games played in Williams Arena.

The most recent meeting came on March 18, 1998, in the quarterfinals of the NIT. Minnesota posted a 73-71 victory behind 24 points from Quincy Lewis and 21 points and 11 rebounds by Sam Jacobson. Aaron Hutchins topped Marquette with 20 points and drilled four three-pointers. John Cliff?s three-point attempt from the right wing rimmed out as time expired. The Golden Gophers went on the Madison Square Garden and captured the NIT title.


 MARQUETTE AVERAGES VERSUS MINNESOTA
     G   FG-FGA (%)  3FG-3FGA (%)    FT-FTA (%)  A   T   B   S   Pts.-Avg.   Reb.-Avg.
 Cliff       1   2-4 (50.0)  2-4 (50.0)      0-0 (0) 0   0   0   0   6-6.0       1-1.0
 Wardle  1   2-7 (28.6)  0-3 (0)     0-0 (0) 1   2   0   0   4-4.0       1-1.0
 Miller  1   0-0 (0) 0-0 (0)     1-2 (50.0)  0   0   0   0   1-1.0       0-0.0
 Polonowski  1   0-0 (0) 0-0 (0)     0-0 (0) 0   0   0   0   0-0.0       0-0.0
 Clausen 1   2-3 (66.7)  0-0 (0)     2-2 (100.0)0    0   0   0   6-6.0       3-3.0

Last Time Out Marquette posted a 62-43 victory over Chicago State in the season opener for both teams on Nov. 20 in Milwaukee. It was the ninth consecutive season-opening win for the Golden Eagles and the 42nd straight victory in a home opener.

Marquette led by as many as nine points on two occasions in the first half, the last coming at the 3:40 mark and the Golden Eagles up 27-18. Chicago State scored the final six points of the half to pull within three (27-24) at the break.

After a 32-32 tie at the 15:15 point of the second half, Marquette went on a 14-3 run to put the game away. Bart Miller scored six points in that key stretch for the Golden Eagles.

Although Marquette shot just 34.3% from the field, Chicago State managed just 25.0%, and only 22.9% in the second half. The Golden Eagles outrebounded the Cougars 54-47, forced 15 turnovers, and blocked eight shots.

John Cliff scored a team-high 14 points and Cordell Henry came off the bench to add 11 points. Oluoma Nnamaka tied his career highs with four blocks and two blocks and also added six points and nine rebounds.

Two players turned in strong efforts off the bench. Jon Harris grabbed 10 rebounds, his first career double-figure rebounding game, and John Polonowski blocked four shots.

CSU?s Tim Bryant led all scorers with 15 points.

Injury Update Junior Greg Clausen underwent surgery on Friday, Oct. 29, to repair a torn medial meniscus in his left knee. He missed both exhibition games, but came off the bench to play 11 minutes in the season opener against Chicago State.

Krunti Hester, the lone freshman on this year?s squad, did not appear in either exhibition contest or the season opener. He has been hampered by a sore right ankle.

Cordell Henry was under the weather and came off the bench in the Nov. 20 opener. He played 18 minutes and scored 11 points.

Road Show The Golden Eagles are 27-55 all-time in road openers. Marquette has won its last two road openers. The last time a Marquette squad dropped its opening road game was on Nov. 29, 1996, when the Golden Eagles fell 79-72 at Santa Clara.

Marquette has faced Minnesota six times in its road opener and has a 3-3 record in those games. Here?s a list of those contests:

Dec. 8, 1964 UM 78, MU 59

Dec. 3, 1968 UM 75, MU 73

Dec. 8, 1970 MU 70, UM 61

Dec. 18, 1975 UM 77, MU 73 (OT)

Dec. 6, 1977 MU 61, UM 44

Dec. 17, 1980 MU 92, UM 84

Oh Yes They Call It A Streak Marquette has made at least one three-point field goal in 319 consecutive games. The last game without a trey was against Wake Forest on Feb. 2, 1989.

Bench Production In the season opening win over Chicago State, the Marquette bench scored 29 points and grabbed 19 rebounds. The reserves shot 35.5% from the field and 53.8% from the charity stripe.

Marquette in the Bradley Center The Golden Eagles are in their 12th season in the Bradley Center. Marquette has a 129-50 all-time record in the Bradley Center.

Marquette in the Milwaukee Arena The Golden Eagles will play two regular-season contests (Dec. 7 vs. Dayton, Dec. 29 vs. Coppin State) at the Milwaukee Arena.

The Arena served as Marquette?s home from 1950-51 to 1987-88. The Golden Eagles have played four games in their former home since then and are 4-0 in those contests.

Climbing the Career Charts John Cliff and Brian Wardle rank among Marquette?s top career three-point shooters. Here?s a look at where they stand on the career statistical lists:

Three-Point Field Goals

7. John Cliff 103 - 47 shy of sixth

10. Brian Wardle 83 - 3 shy of 9th

Three-Point Field Goals Attempted

7. John Cliff 316 - 76 shy of 6th

9. Brian Wardle 259 - 45 shy of 8th

Cliff Hanger John Cliff kept the hot hand he had in the exhibition season in Saturday?s opener against Chicago State. Against the Cougars he had 14 points and seven rebounds. His five offensive rebounds tied his career high that was set last season.

Brian?s Song Brian Wardle suffered a mild concussion in the opening minute of the Nov. 20 game against Chicago State. He scored six points and grabbed three rebounds in 11 minutes in the second half. After going 0-7 from three-point range in two exhibition games, he connected on the only trey he tried against the Cougars.

The Man in the Middle With Greg Clausen still recovering from Oct. 29 knee surgery, John Mueller is getting the bulk of the minutes at the center position. In Saturday?s opener against Chicago State, Mueller had four points and eight rebounds.

Clausen saw 11 minutes of action and grabbed two defensive boards and blocked a shot.

Dishing the Rock With Cordell Henry under the weather, Brian Barone got the starting nod at point guard against Chicago State. He had three assists and one turnover in 21 minutes.

Henry saw 18 minutes off the bench and scored 11 points.

The Versatile Mr. Nnamaka Oluoma Nnamaka is perhaps Marquette?s most versatile player on both ends of the floor.

He proved that in the opener with six points, nine rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two steals. Four of his rebounds came off the offensive glass.

Chairman of the Boards Sophomore Jon Harris grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds in Saturday?s win over Chicago State. That was his first double-figure rebounding game in his brief career.

Streaks ?n? Stuff

Consecutive Games Played - Greg Clausen - 57

Consecutive Starts - Oluoma Nnamaka - 16

Consecutive Double-Figure Scoring Games - Cordell Henry - 4

Consecutive Games with a Three-Pointer - John Cliff - 6

The Last Time a Golden Eagle Scored 20+ Points - John Cliff (37) vs. Memphis - Feb. 21, 1999

The Last Time a Golden Eagle Had 10+ Rebounds - Jon Harris (10) vs. Chicago State - Nov. 20, 1999

The Last Time a Golden Eagle Had a Double-Double (Points-Rebounds) - Oluoma Nnamaka (13 points-10 rebounds) vs. Houston - Feb. 27, 1999

The Last Time a Golden Eagle Had 10+ Assists - Marcus West (11) vs. Dayton - Dec. 21, 1997

The Last Time an Opponent Scored 20+ Points - Jimmie Hunter (21) - Memphis - Feb. 21, 1999

The Last Time an Opponent Had 10+ Rebounds - Pierre Shuttlesworth (11) - Chicago State - Nov. 20, 1999

The Last Time an Opponent Had a Double-Double (Points-Rebounds) - Kelly Wise (12 points-12 rebounds) - Memphis - Feb. 21, 1999

The Last Time an Opponent Had 10+ Assists - Edwin Young (10) - Dayton - Nov. 28, 1998

By the Numbers

Games Led in Scoring

Cliff - 1.

Games Led in Rebounding

Harris - 1.

Double-Figure Scoring Games

Marquette - 2 (Cliff, Henry - 1).

Opponents - 2.

Double-Figure Rebounding Games

Marquette - 1 (Harris - 1).

Opponents - 1.

Tune in to the Golden Eagles Steve ?The Homer? True and George Thompson return for their ninth season on the Marquette Basketball Radio Network.

Milwaukee's WISN AM 1130 is the flagship station of the Marquette Basketball Radio Network. The network includes the following affiliates:

WFAW AM 940 (Fort Atkinson)

WRJQ AM 1050 (Appleton)

WCLO AM 1230 (Janesville)

WOMT AM 1240 (Manitowoc)

WRJN AM 1400 (Racine)

WBWI FM 92.5 (West Bend)

Marquette broadcasts all of its men's basketball games around the world on the Internet. The games will be broadcast on Broadcast.com. All men's games are broadcast live and at no cost to the listener.

The Tom Crean Show on Radio 1130 WISN Marquette head coach Tom Crean and Steve ?The Homer? True will talk Marquette basketball on Crean?s weekly radio show from 7:30-8 p.m. on Radio 1130 WISN, the flagship station for Marquette basketball broadcasts. Here?s a list of dates for The Tom Crean Show:

Monday, November 29

Tuesday, December 14

Monday, January 10

Monday, January 17

Monday, January 24

Monday, January 31

Monday, February 7

Monday, February 14

Monday, February 21

Monday, February 28

Monday, March 6

Channel Surfing Sixteen Marquette basketball games will be televised this season. Below is a list of Marquette?s televised contests: