<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">TUCSON, Arizona (Ticker) -- No. 9 Arizona and 21st-ranked Marquette meet for just the third time on Saturday when they match up at the McKale Center. The teams split their first two first two encounters, with Marquette posting a 76-62 triumph in Milwaukee on December 28, 1973 and Arizona rolling to a 94-80 victory here on January 8, 1994. The Wildcats (3-1) have won back-to-back games, including an impressive 91-83 triumph vs. No. 6 Texas at the Jimmy V Classic in New York on Tuesday. Hassan Adams collected a career-high 30 points and 10 rebounds and Andre Iguodala recorded the seventh triple-double in school history with 13, 13 and 10 assists. Arizona shot 55 percent in the second half, making nine of its first 11 shots as it came out of the break on a 16-6 run. Marquette (6-0) last played on December 5, beating Grambling State, 71-55.</div> Link I have to favor Marquette in this game. Seeing them ranked twenty-first is a surprise. They've got a talented unbeaten team that's beaten a ranked (Notre Dame) team already. Does anyone else have a prediction?
This should be a good game the whole way through. But I am going to have to take Arizona. I think that Adams, Stoudamire, Iguodala, and Frye will be just too much for them.
I'm going with 'Zona in this one. Marquette will create a big challenge though and like you, Wave, I'm surprised to see them this low in the rankings. Igoudala is really establishing himself as one of the best all-around players in college basketball and Adams is coming off of a career performance against Texas. Marquette has the size advantage, but Texas did as well so we know Arizona can overcome that.
I knew Novack was going to be a big factor. So far he has only scored when Marquette makes runs. Two threes in the beginning of the game, and a three and buzzer beater to end the half. Arizona has turned the ball over way too much, but they have managed to claw their way back into the game and even take the lead. They just need to find consistency on defense in trying to close out on the shooters. They are switching too much on screens so when Marquette reverses the ball the 'Zona defenders are scrambling to find the open shooters. Good game so far. What a game! Things were lookings very bleak as Arizona was still having trouble with the pick and roll, but man did they ever come back. Stoudamire couldn't miss anything and Adams was just spectacular by blocking shots, hitting threes, and putting exclaimation points on whatever he did (though it did hurt the Wildcats once when Marquette got a layup immediately on the other end). Merritt was taking advantage of his size, but then he got in foul trouble and Deiner just ran out of gas. Even the announcer on Fox Sports Net said (when Merritt got his fourth foul): "Mark this time at 16:05 when Merritt gets his fourth foul." (or something along those lines). I still can't decide what the play of the game is: Adams' huge block on Novack I believe it was, Novack's four-point play at the end of the game, or the dunk by Adams that basically clinched the game for Arizona. I was jumping up and down the whole game hoping 'Zona would win. Looks like it wasn't wasted energy.
