Three Reasons to be Optimistic about Marquette

Many things will look different for Marquette this season, but here’s three reasons to be excited.

Steve Wojciechowski

Wojo has never been a head coach before, so it’s difficult to judge his coaching skills before his team takes the court.  But one thing is for sure: we know he had a good mentor.  The man has been under Coach K for the last 15 years, so it’s safe to say they will have some similar attributes and coaching style. And if you’re going to be similar to anybody, it’s good to be similar to the winningest coach in NCAA Division 1 history.

We’ve already seen some of Wojo's impact of Wojo on the recruiting trail.  He was able to lock up local Wisconsin studs Nick Noskowiak and Matt Heldt, along with shooting guard Haanif Cheatham from Fort Lauderdale.  All three of these 2015 recruits are 4-star, high school standouts that have the ability to impact games right from the get go.

Deonte Burton

Burton might become the go-to guy on this young Golden Eagles team, and for good reason.  Burton ended last season with an impressive output of 23 points on 9-14 shooting in a loss to Xavier.  The 6-foot-4 sophomore has proven that his size won’t hold him back, and with the wide array of guards on this Marquette roster, Burton will be looked at to bang around in the paint.  He’ll need to make sure he stays out of foul trouble, though. He provides the spark for MU, so the more he’s in the lineup, the better this team is.

Transfers

Wojo wasn’t able to keep the recruiting class together when Buzz Williams left, but he was able to replace them with a couple talented transfers.  Matt Carlino coming over from BYU will certainly help MU get a change of pace from the defensive-minded Derrick Wilson at the point guard position.  As an experienced senior, Carlino should be able to help mold the younger guards, Duane Wilson, John Dawson and JaJuan Johnson into the formidable guards it takes to win in the Big East.

One thing Marquette was severely lacking after this past season was height, but Wojo addressed that dillemma by getting Gabe Levin and Luke Fischer to come on board.  Levin transferred from Loyola Marymount, and although he is red-shirting and won’t play this year, we’ll still throw him in this category. The 6-foot-7 forward averaged 11.1 points per game and also grabbed a team-high 7.1 rebounds per game in his only season at Loyola Marymount.

As for Fischer, he brings the big-man role to the Golden Eagles right away.  Fischer is more of a passing big, but is known to have a pretty good offensive game from inside fifteen feet.  MU Assistant Coach Jerry Wainwright compared his game to that of Tim Duncan. Fischer was also a four-star recruit coming out of high school, so Marquette seems to have plenty of talent at its disposal moving forward.

What are your thoughts on the upcoming Marquette season? Voice your opinion on the Golden Eagles in our comments section.