2014-15 Blue Ribbon's Preview - Marquette

Steve Wojciechowski wouldn’t leave Duke, where he spent 4 years as a player and 15 years as an assistant to Mike Krzyzewski, for just any job. When Marquette came calling shortly after Buzz Williams’ surprise departure for Virginia Tech, Wojciechowski finally found the right opportunity at the right school at the right time.

He might have wanted to take one more look at the roster before he was introduced April 1 as the new head coach. After a season of underachievement in 2013-14, the Golden Eagles lost three of their top four scorers plus a valuable inside defensive presence and leader. Then nearly four months after Wojciechowski was hired, Todd Mayo (11.3 PPG), the team’s top returning scorer and best perimeter shooter, decided to quit the team and pursue an NBA career.

So if you’re scoring at home, the Golden Eagles lost 71 percent of their scoring and 82 percent of their 3-point shooting. They begin the season with a roster of nine, not counting two transfers who are sitting out the year and another transfer who becomes eligible at the end of the first semester.

- And coach, about all that lost scoring...

“You’re not the first person to point that out to me,” Wojciechowski said during a telephone interview. “If I’ve had one person tell me that we’ve lost 70 percent of our scoring, I’ve had 100. So you trying to ruin my morning?”

He then laughed. But Wojciechowski is dead serious about wanting to build a team in the style that he wants, which is “an aggressive attacking team on both ends of the floor.”

“That’s the situation I’m taking over,” he said. “On paper you lose all those contributions statistically, and that shouldn’t be overlooked. That’s real. We lost some real key contributors. But with those guys gone, the hope is that other guys with the opportunity will step up and grow as players and take advantage of the opportunity to play and produce. Obviously you have to do your research on what you’re stepping into, but my focus has been on what we have and not on what we don’t have.”

The Golden Eagles entered last season on most Top 25 lists and were picked to finish first in the Big East, but they were ranked for only the first three weeks. The season ended with four straight losses, including their opening Big East tournament game against Xavier, and the team’s streak of eight straight NCAA tournaments was snapped. 

Davante Gardner led the team in scoring (14.9 PPG) and won conference sixth man honors for the second straight year.

The hyperkinetic Buzz Williams, either looking for a change or concerned that Marquette had both an interim president and an interim athletic director, then bolted and landed at Virginia Tech, a peculiar move given that football rules the roost at Tech, and that Marquette reportedly spends more money per player per year than any other school except Duke.

So enter Wojciechowski, who went right to work trying to calm the anxiety and build the trust of the current players, many of whom spent time considering other teams. Certainly none of the returnees were happy with the way last season turned out, and the new coach said, “They’ve used it as motivation to try to leave a better mark on the program and start a new era off on the right foot.”

There is a lot of work to do. First Wojciechowski has looked to the older players on the team — seniors Derrick Wilson, Juan Anderson and Matt Carlino, who transferred from BYU to use his final year of eligibility with the Golden Eagles.

“Your experienced guys have to set the tone, and I think Derrick and Juan and Matt have set a good tone for the group,” Wojciechowski said. “We’ll need some of our younger guys to step up and take advantage of the opportunity that will be there for them this year that maybe wasn’t as much last year.”

Deonte Burton

The team’s top returning scorer is 6-4 (1,92), 240-pound sophomore Deonte Burton (6.9 PPG, 2.2 RPG), who made the Big East All-Rookie team last year. 

Burton had some explosive games, including 23 points in 24 minutes in the tournament loss to Xavier, 15 points in 16 minutes against San Diego State and 13 in 13 minutes versus Villanova. He is a tough physical player who must do more than score in Wojciechowski’s system.

“Deonte’s got a really high level of talent,” Wojciechowski said. “He’s a very unique player because he combines athleticism and power. He can be a mismatch problem. He’s got the ability to score the ball. We need him to make a big jump as a player. We have to be a team where everybody rebounds. He has a physique, ability, nose for the ball, to really make a jump in that area.”

Derrick Wilson

The 6-1 (1,84) Derrick Wilson (5.0 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 4.2 APG, 1.3 SPG), who has appeared in 100 games with the Golden Eagles, plays strong defense and takes incredible care of the basketball (135 assists, 48 turnovers last season) at the point. But he is a reluctant shooter; he scored three points or fewer in 17 games and made just 1 of 14 3-point tries, and Wojciechowski wants to see him take the shot when it’s a good one.

“The main thing we need Derrick to do is to be a stabilizing force and a leader,” he said. “But when he does have an open shot, he should have the confidence to take it and know that when he’s open and it’s a good shot, that’s what he’s supposed to do. I’m hopeful he’ll be a guy who can give us some production from an offensive standpoint.”

Juan Anderson

The 6-6 (1,97) Juan Anderson (3.2 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 1.0 APG, 1.0 SPG) started 50 games the last two seasons but averaged just more than 13 minutes. Wojciechowski said he brings great energy to the floor every day and “has been a positive influence on our team.”

Steve Taylor Jr. 

For the first month of the season, the Golden Eagles’ tallest player will be 6-7, 240-pound junior Steve Taylor Jr. (2.5 PPG, 2.7 RPG). Taylor had two games of note last season, including a 14-point, eight-rebound effort against Georgetown, but sat on the bench as a DNP-coach’s decision in nine contests. If you look at him, you want more, and Wojciechowski expects it this season.

“Steve is a versatile big guy, and on a team that doesn’t have a great amount of size, he’s a really important player,” Wojciechowski said. “He’s got a very good skill set for a guy of his size. He would be the first to admit that last year, for whatever reason, he didn’t have the type of year that he wanted to. So I think he’s hungry.”

The Golden Eagles lost their primary perimeter shooters from last year with Jake Thomas, Jamil Wilson and Todd Mayo having combined for 124 3-point baskets. The returning players have accounted for just 28, and Wojciechowski will demand more production this year.

Jajuan Johnson (4.3 PPG, 1.1 RPG, 1.0 APG), a 6-5 sophomore, impressed in the non-conference portion of the schedule last season, including a career-high 18 points against Cal State Fullerton. But he sat out seven of Marquette’s last 10 games, and played a total of five minutes in the other three.

Duane Wilson, a 6-2 (1,87) redshirt freshman, sat out his first season with the Golden Eagles because of a stress fracture in his left leg. A hometown Milwaukee kid, he was rated as the No. 11 point guard in the country by one recruiting analyst during his senior year of high school. Wilson is healthy and coming off a good summer, but Wojciechowski knows it will take a bit of time for him to chip the rust off.

Matt Carlino (13.7 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 4.3 APG, 1.7 SPG), a 6-2 (1,87) guard, is a welcome addition for a team seeking perimeter help. Carlino has knocked down 157 3-pointers in his career, including 60 last season when he made honorable mention All-West Coast Conference. He is comfortable at the point but may move to an off-guard spot this season.

“I think Matt [Carlino] is a guy who should be able to really shoot the ball for us,” Wojciechowski said. “He’s a guy who’s done it at a high level on NCAA tournament teams, averaged double figures, and is a very good shooter and player. He’s a guy we’re going to need to hit shots.

“Duane Wilson has the ability to score the ball. We’re going to need him to be able to score. Those guys, as well as Jajuan Johnson, hopefully will pick up the void in terms of being perimeter threats.”

THE BIG FISHER

The Golden Eagles will add some size in December when 6-11 (2,09), 245-pound redshirt sophomore Luke Fischer (2.8 PPG, 2.1 RPG) becomes eligible at the end of the first semester. Fischer, a former Mr. Basketball in Wisconsin, played in 13 games for Indiana last season before withdrawing from school. On a team starving for any kind of height, Fischer will be most welcome.

“He’s got great size and he’s mobile for a post player,” Wojciechowski said. “I think he will be very good for us. In a short period of time in college, he hasn’t had continuity, whether that’s transfer, coaching changes, injuries. The more he can get the day-to-day preparation, the better he’ll be, and I think he’s got a chance to be a tremendously impactful player here.”

John Dawson

Another player who may be able to provide help from beyond the arc is 6-2 (1,87) sophomore John Dawson (2.0 PPG, 1.1 RPG, 1.0 APG). Dawson’s 3-point shooting (.269) was spotty last season, but he had a career game in an overtime win against Georgetown with 12 points in 31 minutes.
Williams had signed four recruits for his class of 2014 before leaving, and the only one to honor his commitment was 6-6 (1,97), 180-pound forward Sandy Cohen III (Seymour/ Seymour, Wis.). Cohen averaged 16.6 points and 7.2 rebounds as a senior.

It’s a pretty threadbare roster Wojciechowski inherited at Marquette. He felt fortunate for the NCAA’s relaxed rules on being with players in the summer, which allowed him to build relationships, get to know the players and vice versa and be on the court with them.
“The newness of it all and the fresh start for the guys, whether it’s the guys who were in the program last year or the guys who had just joined our team, I think that’s something we should all be excited for,” Wojciechowski said. “We should look at that as a great opportunity and one that we’re going to work like crazy to capitalize on.”

Being short on depth means everyone on the roster has a chance to be a contributor. Wojciechowski didn’t want to commit to picking five starters, but he does think any lineup he puts on the court will be versatile. 

The Golden Eagles have a talented swingman in Burton, a player who values in the ball in Derrick Wilson and an energy guy in Anderson. 

Carlino will bring experience, leadership and perimeter shooting to the team right away.

The rest of the roster is pretty much untested. But whoever plays, Wojciechowski said, must “have a tremendous hunger to compete. I would like to see a group that’s unified and doesn’t beat themselves. If we’re able to make those things habits, I would be very excited about that.”

It won’t be easy. The non-conference schedule has some formidable matchups at Ohio State, home with archrival Wisconsin and a possible contest with Michigan State during Thanksgiving weekend in Orlando. 

Fischer will see action in a couple of games before the Big East season begins, which should help get him acclimated. But it’s not likely that Marquette could finish above sixth or seventh in the league.

Joe Juliano, Blue Ribbon

LOCATION: Milwaukee, WI
CONFERENCE: Big East
LAST SEASON: 17-15 (.531) 

CONFERENCE RECORD 9-9 (6th)

STARTERS RETURNING/LOST  2/3

NICKNAME Golden Eagles

COLORS: Blue & Gold

HOMECOURT: BMO Harris Bradley Center (18,600) 

COACH: Steve Wojciechowski (Duke ’98)

RECORD AT SCHOOL First year

CAREER RECORD: First year

ASSISTANTS: 

Chris Carrawell (Duke ’00) 

Brett Nelson (Florida ’04) 

Mark Phelps (Old Dominion ’96)

WINS (last 5 years) 22-22-27-26-17

RPI (last 5 years)  55-50-9-13-94 

2013-14 FINISH: Lost in Big East quarterfinals