Marquette University Athletics
Men's Basketball to Face No. 16/23 West Virginia
1/13/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Golden Eagles look for back-to-back road wins
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MILWAUKEE ? Fresh off its first BIG EAST road victory in program history, the Marquette men's basketball team looks to make it two road victories in two tries when it visits West Virginia (ranked no. 16 by the Associated Press and 23 by ESPN/USA Today). Marquette and West Virginia meet on January 14 at 1 p.m. (2 p.m. EST) in Morgantown, W.Va. The game airs locally on WDJT TV 58 and is part of the ESPN Full Court Package.
Winning their first road contest wasn't easy, but it helped the team grow and get better.
"We had our first experience of being a road team in the BIG EAST," head coach Tom Crean said. "In Seton Hall, we saw a team that was well coached, excited to play and did an excellent job against us."
Picking up a narrow win against the Pirates gave Marquette a good dose of what being on the road is like in league play. They will expect even more of a battle with West Virginia, but Seton Hall's game gave the team a level of confidence on the road.
"We made plays, we made big shots, we made free throws and some defensive plays, which is how you gain experience and learn to win on the road," Crean added.
Once again, Marquette will look to ride the wave of hot shooting, great rebounding and solid defense by senior forward Steve Novak. Over the last three games, Novak is averaging 27.7 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. Novak's size and ability to play like a guard make him difficult to contain both away from the basket and near the goal. Novak is the only player in the country who averages at least 3.5 three point field goals per game and 5.0 rebounds per game.
"He's becoming a complete player," Crean said of his team leader. "Shooting is certainly something he always worked hard at. But he's gaining more ability in his mid range game and getting to the rim. The two areas he's made the most improvement is defending the ball and getting rebounds."
While Novak's numbers have shot up during BIG EAST play, Crean is expecting nothing less from his senior as the season progresses.
"He's a diligent worker and a tremendous teammate," Crean added. "I don't think he's anywhere near leveling off."
In West Virginia, Marquette will face a similar player to Novak in senior Kevin Pittsnogle. At 6-foot-11 and listed as a center, Pittsnogle's range extends far from the basket.
"Both (Novak and Pittsnogle) are similar in the ways they shoot the ball," Crean said. "Steve is hard to describe. Some have guarded him with a guard and some with a big man and he makes things happen for himself and his team. I see Kevin as the same type of player."
Pittsnogle enters the Marquette contest scoring 20.2 points per game, the 32nd best total in the nation and the third highest total among BIG EAST players. He has led West Virginia in scoring seven times this season including a season high 34 in a 22 point win over Canisius.
"It takes time to learn to play with a player like Steve or Kevin," Crean added. "It seems that West Virginia really understands how to play with Kevin and he understands where he fits in with that offense."
The Mountaineers also have another scorer in the BIG EAST?s top 10. Mike Gansey is eight in the BIG EAST in scoring at 18.7 points per game. He has scored as many as 28 this season, tossing that total in against Texas and St. Bonaventure.
West Virginia is riding a nine-game win streak after having dropped three straight earlier in the season. The Mountaineers have started 3-0 in BIG EAST play, including a win over no. 3 Villanova in Philadelphia.
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