Well, it's over. A season of transition ended at the hands of the class of the Big East and gives you an idea how where Marquette needs to go to challenge in the conference. As hard as it is to believe, this is The Golden Eagles worst season since the mid-60's. The blame lays solely at the feet of the previous head coach who skipped town before the you-know-what hit the fan. Coach Steve Wojciehowski did the best he could with the hand dealt and has crushed his first recruiting cycle, landing a top-10 class. To figure out why Marquette had the season they had, let's look back at that very topic, recruiting.
Senior Class:
The senior class included Juan Anderson & Derrick Wilson and added Matt Carlino as a graduate transfer. The class also included Todd Mayo who left early and two players who transferred, Reggie Smith & Jamail Jones.
Anderson was a Top-100 prospect who never lived up the billing. There's no questioning his effort or desire but forced into a starting role this season and one of the vets, Anderson would probably have been better suited as a reserve. He could defend and rebound and occasionally hit a 3. Wilson was a good defender who was a non-factor on offense and awful free throw shooter. Wilson, like Juan, would have been a solid backup PG who protected the ball and could provide solid defense in a limited role. Both as starters just wasn't a recipe for success despite their best efforts.
Mayo was effectively replaced by Carlino who was superior player in every way imaginable. Smith ended up at Eastern Illinois. Jones ended up at Florida Gulf Coast and had a nice career.
Junior Class:
Steve Taylor, Jr. is the last of this class. Taylor started the year slowly but by the end began to play much better. He was the teams best rebounder at the close of Big East play. Hampered by injuries last year, he seemed a likely candidate to transfer had Buzz Williams stuck around. He was largely ineffective and tentative early in the year but played better and with more confidence as the season went on. Taylor could end up being a surprise player next year for the team.
Also in this class at various times included Aaron Durley who lost his scholarship so Buzz could sign Trent Lockett, TJ Taylor who lasted two weeks on campus before leaving and Jamal Ferguson who now plays at North Carolina Central. Durley's career was derailed by injury at TCU.
Wally Ellenson is also part of this class as a transfer. He was brought in by Coach Wojo and almost certainly helped reel in Henry Ellenson. Not sure the impact Wally will have on the court but has been wildly successful as a member of the track team in the high jump.
Sophomore Class:
This class was once considered by some, a top-10 class nationally. It included JUCO transfer Jameel McKay, Duane Wilson, Deonte Burton, John Dawson and JaJuan Johnson. It eventually added Indiana transfer Luke Fischer.
Well, all that remains are Wilson, Fischer and Johnson. Jameel McKay never played a game for Marquette, transferring to Iowa State after Marquette Madness last October. His loss was the biggest of all the guys that have been in and out of Marquette the last few years. McKay has an offensive rating that would lead Marquette by plenty and has been a fantastic rebounder for the Cyclones. He certainly would have been a factor last season and likely a star in the Big East this season. It is possible Fischer doesn't come if he's here, but that seems unlikely.
John Dawson would have provided depth this year at PG but the writing was on the wall early that he wasn't going to see much court time even with Marquette shorthanded. He transferred to Liberty but they just fired their head coach, Dale Layer. Burton had a rough fall. His mother passed away and he never seemed to fit with what Wojo was trying to do. A weak defender (though he has a knack for steals) who found foul trouble, his offensive game seemed less explosive than anticipated. Pegged by many as a breakout player, he didn't show it while here and like Dawson, left at semester, transferring to Iowa State. I believe he'll excel in Hoiberg's system.
Jajuan Johnson found himself benched for a game for poor practice habits despite the limited depth. He still didn't see a lot of court time but flashed glimpses of the potential that made him a top-50 recruit. He seemed to aggravate the staff with some of his play and it'll be curious to see where he fits going forward. A poor shooter, he can still be an effective offensive player attacking the rim. In his limited time, he tended to shoot a bit much. He has a lot of good qualities that need to be harnessed. I think he can be a real good college player. I'm not sure if it'll be at Marquette.
It was hard to know what they had in Luke Fischer but he showed moments of what he can become and that's an effective low post scoring threat. With basically no help in the post on offense and a non-scoring PG, Fischer's numbers are actually pretty impressive. He caught the league by surprise after missing most of the non-conference season as a transfer. Given another season to add more bulk and he'll be a pain for the Big East for the next two years. He was 59th in the nation in block %, a number that should only go up but he needs to work on the defensive end. A healthy Taylor and the incoming class should help that.
Freshman Class:
This class initially included Sandy Cohen, who Wojo managed to keep and Ahmed Hill, Satchel Pierce, Marial Shayok and Malek Harris. Hill & Pierce followed Buzz to Virginia Tech while Shayok ended up at Virginia. Those three all played decent minutes. Shayok has given Virginia good minutes recently.
Sandy Cohen gave Marquette good minutes in spurts, hitting some 3's but clearly needs time in the gym. Not sure what his role is moving forward.
Duane Wilson falls here because he was a redshirt frosh. Make no bones about it, if Henry Ellenson isn't their best player next year, Wilson will be. Wilson oozes confidence and can attack the basket and shoot the ball. He has the chance to be a multiple All-Big East Team player. His redshirt might be the only good thing Buzz did last year besides signing Fischer.
So?
The 2011 & 2012 classes, Buzz Williams classes doomed this team. I don't think it's fair to say those guys underachieved. They're not starters on contending teams. The 2013 class only has two players left plus Fischer. Wilson and Fischer are studs. We'll never know why Jameel left but his departure was huge. Buzz's departure also partially lead to the departures of Dawson & Burton. We certainly know this year's class was decimated by Buzz's departure and destroyed any depth they had. Why did Buzz leave Marquette? Two down years would hurt the Buzz brand. When all those national scribes pen Buzz love letters, remember he left scorched earth in Milwaukee because he's "quirky".
Looking forward, Wojo has killed it on the recruiting trail. He originally kept Sun Prairie PG Nick Noskowiak. Noskowiak has since left the class after a tumultuous senior season. Wojo landed Neenah big man Matt Heldt not long after taking the job. He hit his biggest home run landing five star F, Henry Ellenson. Heldt may not provide many minutes next year but Ellenson will start from day one and will be one of the most watched freshmen in the country.
Wojo would then land combo guard Haanif Cheatham out of Florida next. A four star recruit, he should contribute immediately. The staff then zeroed in on two late bloomers. First up was Sacar Anim, a SG from Minnesota. Anim played with Reid Travis who is a freshman at Stanford and currently plays with Jarvis Johnson, a Minnesota commit. Anim began to attract attention late from Big Ten schools but Wojo and staff were locked in and landed him. After losing Noskowiak, they set their sights on Philly PG, Traci Carter to round out the class. Carter, a top-100 talent, suffered a torn meniscus his junior season of high school and missed most of the summer camps. He was still thought of highly enough to attract offers from Louisville and UConn and was also pursued by Xavier and Memphis. The recruitment of Carter was late as him and Marquette weren't looking at one another as late as January. Landing Carter was a major coup for the staff.
It seems likely this class is done but I'd be surprised if they don't add a graduate transfer
The worst year in decades will turnout to be an aberration beginning next year. And when you read the glowing Buzz Williams snuff pieces, remember it was Buzz that left the program in the shape it was in.
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