Marquette University Athletics
Men's Basketball Visits Rutgers on Sunday
2/10/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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MILWAUKEE ? Marquette plays its final game of a two game road trip and the third to last regular season road game of the season when it visits Rutgers on Sunday, February 12 at 2 p.m. (EST).
The Golden Eagles head into the final six games of the season in solid position in BIG EAST play. With a 6-4 league mark, Marquette is in the upper half of the league's standings.
Marquette ends an eight day hiatus from league play. The Golden Eagles are coming off a game in which it extended fourth ranked Villanova to its limits, before falling by five.
Rutgers, hard hit by injuries over the last week, has lost three in a row and is coming off a 90-67 loss at Notre Dame on Wednesday.
The Scarlet Knights surged at the beginning of the season, but thanks to a rash of injuries have struggled late, dropping three straight, all on the road, including its most recent loss, a 90-63 decision at Notre Dame.
"As far as Rutgers goes, I think Notre Dame caught fire," head coach Tom Crean said. "I think it was an aberration for Rutgers and not an example of how good they are. They are a team that plays extremely well at home. They are more than just a team where Quincy Douby shoots the ball."
Douby is the Scarlet Knights leading scorer and is the only Rutgers player averaging more than 10 points per game.
Rutgers has been undermanned as a result of the injuries. Junior forward Adrian Hill had surgery on his knee last week and will miss the remainder of the season. Hill averaged 3.6 points and 2.0 rebounds per game as a key reserve.
Freshman starter J.R. Inman is sidelined for the next four to six weeks with a fractured fibula in his right leg. Inman scored 8.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game before the injury. Fellow freshman starter Anthony Farmer suffered a bruised shoulder in practice on Tuesday and was unable to play against Notre Dame, but likely will return for the Marquette game.
"If Farmer's back, that increases their productivity," Crean said.
Crean said he could empathize with what Rutgers went through prior to that Notre Dame contest. He compared Rutgers' loss at Notre Dame to Marquette's loss at Louisville last season.
"We had the same thing happen at Louisville last year," Crean said. "We found out 30-to-45 minutes before the game that Travis Diener would not play. It's a psychological nightmare for the team to play without one of its better players. That's what happened this week with Rutgers with Inman being out and Farmer being hurt in practice."
Junior center Byron Joynes, the team?s leading rebounder at 5.9 per game, was also forced to the sidelines eight minutes into the Notre Dame contest in after re-aggravating a foot injury.
Marquis Webb, who moved from his small forward position to point guard in Rutgers?s re-shuffled starting lineup, posted his eighth double-digit scoring effort in the past nine games with 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field.
Even at full strength, Rutgers relies a good deal on Douby. The junior guard averages 24.0 points per game and is a solid outside threat, hitting at 38.2 percent.
"We like to do a lot of dribble penetration. When you have big guys that can't take take the ball and score on the block, dribble penetration allows them to do more things," said Rutgers head coach Gary Waters. "When you have really only one guy that shoots the three, you have to set screens for him and work the others within that situation. The thing I give Quincy credit for is that he will go and create for himself and go and create for others."
Despite the recent injuries, Crean expects Rutgers to give Marquette a good test, especially at the Louis Brown Athletic Center, where Rutgers is 10-4 this season.
"I think they (Rutgers) are going to come out and play the game of the year. Knowing Gary and how he coaches, there's no one here that's going to overlook them," Crean said. "We've talked all year about some of the more challenging environments in the BIG EAST, and from what we've heard, Rutgers has certainly been at the top of that list."
Marquette has played a tough road schedule so far this season in BIG EAST play. The Golden Eagles have had to play three nationally ranked teams on the road in its five previous league road games.
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