BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: MARQUETTE @ ST. JOHN'S

February 20, 2008


Marquette has won two in a row impressively and now they head out on the road to take on St. John's. The Redstorm have followed their three-game winning streak with back-to-back losses where they scored a combined 85 points.

Here are the local media previews and game stories on tonight's contest:

Stepping into the Fray (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)
Storm Read for a Rumble (NY Post)

The Golden Eagles are coming off their punishing of Pittsburgh Friday night and now look to finish the Big East schedule strong. It was an up and down first 2/3 of the conference schdule for Tom Crean's club, but wins over Seton Hall and Pitt in impressive fashion look to have righted the MU ship.

St. John's, well...their young squad has certainly taken their lumps. A three-game winning streak over South Florida, Rutgers and Providence showed the team is capable of gutting out a few wins, but their last two have been more of the same. Their young squad is very prone to horrendous offensive play against solid defensive teams, so the ball pressure that Marquette will apply will make scoring a very difficult chore for the 'storm tonight.

Marquette definitely is not the prettiest team to watch. They extend ball pressyre with physical guards. Not a great shooting team by any means, Marquette likes to attack the basket for their points in transition or in the halfcourt. A team in a zone with long and athletic players could give them fits (Louisville, UConn), but that is not the make-up of St. John's.

Marquette is about an 8-pt favorite, and with how difficult it will be for SJU to score points, I think the Golden Eagles cruise past that number.

NBE Blogger Prediction: Marquette 70 St. John's 58