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Famed program is back

The last time we saw the Marquette Golden Eagles in the national spotlight, some guy named Dwyane Wade was leading them to the Final Four. Things have changed in the past three years, but it looks like Marquette is back on the map.

Last year around this time, the Golden Eagles were in Conference USA and senior guard Travis Diener was having his usual outstanding season – until he broke two fingers on his left hand. The rudderless Eagles were then upset by TCU in the first round of the conference championships, bursting their NCAA Tournament bubble. A disheartening 54-40 loss to Western Michigan at the NIT closed out the season.

Diener is now property of the Orlando Magic, and Marquette has dumped C-USA for the powerful Big East. But the Golden Eagles have persevered. They’re right back in the Tournament picture at 16-8 overall and 6-5 in conference play. More impressive for handicappers, Marquette is a tasty 12-6-1 against the spread, including a 94-79 upset of the UConn Huskies in the Big East opener.

Even without Diener, the game plan remains the same for the Eagles: drown the opposition with 3-pointers. Marquette is ranked No. 11 in the nation with a 40.1 percent success rate from downtown. This year’s top threat is senior forward Steve Novak, who has responded to his new role as the focus of the offense with 16.6 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. Not only does Novak nail 45.1 percent of his trey attempts, he’s also a capable inside scorer who’s nearly automatic (58-for-59) from the charity stripe.

Novak admitted to feeling a sense of “senior urgency” that motivates him to close out his college career with a bang. His 41 points and 16 boards against UConn certainly qualify as explosive. But perhaps he’s putting a little too much pressure on himself. Novak went just 4-for-13 from outside in Sunday’s 91-84 loss at Rutgers; the Eagles were 10-for-31 as a team, dropping the cash as 1 ½-point road dogs and leaving Marquette in a tough battle with the likes of Seton Hall and Syracuse for what could be the last Tournament bid in the Big East.

Marquette has a chance to pad its record with a pair of home games this week. Their opponents, however, are the No. 17 Georgetown Hoyas and the No. 9 Pittsburgh Panthers. They’re both in excellent shape for March Madness at 8-3 in conference action. The good news for Golden Eagles’ supporters is that Georgetown (33.4 percent) and Pittsburgh (34.1 percent) are both vulnerable to the 3-point shot. The Panthers’ undersized backcourt will have a particularly tough time stopping the 6-foot-10 Novak from long range; he was limited by an ankle injury to eight points back on Jan. 28 when Pittsburgh scored a 77-71 win, although the visiting Eagles cashed in as 10 ½-point puppies.

The Eagles face Georgetown Monday night at the Bradley Center, with ESPN providing the coverage. Tip-off is at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

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