Men's Basketball Looks to Bounce Back Against Delaware State
12/5/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 5, 2006
MILWAUKEE -
Hoping to bounce back from its first loss of the season and avoid looking ahead to its high-profile game this weekend, No. 17 Marquette hosts Delaware State at the Bradley Center on Tuesday.
The Golden Eagles (8-1) were impressive in winning their first five games by an average of 20.6 points and cracked the Top 10 on the strength of a victory in the CBE Finals over then-No. 9 Duke, but Tom Crean's team fell 64-60 to North Dakota State on Saturday in the championship game of its Blue and Gold Classic - the second straight season Marquette failed to win its in-season tournament.
"We danced a little too close to the line of defeat and tonight we couldn't get over it," Crean said. "They beat us fair and square in every facet. We've dodged bullets, but don't want to give anything back."
Jerel McNeal had 16 points and seven steals for the Golden Eagles, who tumbled nine spots in the poll. Marquette shot just 35.8 percent from the field, committed 17 turnovers and led just once at 3-2.
"I think more than anything, we need to take this as a wakeup call," said McNeal, who also committed five turnovers. "We were playing from behind too much and not putting too halves together, and it caught up to us."
Dominic James, who averages a team-high 17.4 points, was held to eight on 3-of-11 shooting from the field. Despite forcing 25 turnovers, Marquette was unable to get key stops as North Dakota State shot 48.1 percent.
"Twenty-five turnovers do not mean anything if you don't get the stops you want," Marquette guard Wesley Matthews said. "They made their shots and hit them what they needed to. That can crush a team."
After this game, Marquette hosts No. 11 and intrastate rival Wisconsin on Saturday.
Delaware State (2-6) is coming off a 62-40 loss Saturday at Purdue. Roy Bright led the Hornets with 18 points, while Darrin Shine and Jahsha Bluntt each added eight.
The Hornets, who are playing their third ranked opponent, shot just 27.1 percent from the field and were held scoreless for more than 10 minutes in the first half as the Boilermakers built a 10-point halftime lead.
"When you put so much energy into defense, when you get on offense you don't have the legs to shoot the basketball," coach Greg Jackson said.
The Hornets six losses have come by an average of 16.8 points, and three have been by 20 or more. Delaware State has lost 12 consecutive games to Top 25 teams since the start of the 1996-97 season, all by double digits.
Matthews scored 12 points to lead Marquette to a 60-48 win between the teams last season.
Former Marquette basketball star William (Earl) Tatum will be recognized on the Tuesday game ticket. A four-year letter winner from 1972-76, Tatum played under legendary head coach Al McGuire and helped lead his team to a 101-15 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance in all four seasons. After seeing minimal playing time as a freshman, Tatum stepped up and averaged 10.1 points and 5.1 rebounds per game as a sophomore and tallied four points and three rebounds in a 76-64 loss to North Carolina State in the NCAA Championship. The following season as a junior, he averaged 13.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. In 1975-76, Tatum was named co-captain as a senior, and after leading the team with 18.3 points per game, was named an All-American by the Associated Press, Basketball Weekly, Chuck Taylor Converse (Second Team), Helms, Independent, UPI and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association.Tatum was drafted in the second round in the 1976 NBA draft as the 21st selection overall by the Los Angeles Lakers. He spent his first season and part of his second in Los Angeles before going to Cleveland, midway through the year. Tatum spent the next season with Boston and Detroit before finishing his career with Cleveland in 1980.
He was inducted into the M-Club Hall of Fame in 2004 as one of seven Marquette basketball greats to have his jersey number, 43, retired.
Tatum All-Time Rank at Marquette in Career Statistics
- T-9th in field goals made with 543
- T-23rd in points with 1,234
- 29th in rebounds with 563
Tatum All-Time Rank at Marquette in Season Statistics
- 3rd in field goals made (241 in 1975-76); senior record
- 5th in field goals attempted (493 in 1975-76)
