Marquette crushed by Seton Hall...first loss to Pirates in 55 years

So many opportunities the last two games. All squandered by Buzz Williams and his club. Sitting at 9-7 and coming off a win on the road at UCONN, MU had senior night and the Bearcats coming their way. MU could only muster 60 points and lost at home. Tonight another chance to get to 10 wins in the Big East and seal a NCAA bid against Seton Hall, the 12th place team in the league. Unfortunately for Buzz and the Golden Eagles, they were completely dominated in all facets of the game. The final score said Seton Hall by 13 points, but the true nature of the beating was much worse. MU trailed by at least 18 several times during the game and made the score look semi-respectable with some shots in the last minute.

With the loss, MU's streak of 10 or more Big East conference wins since joining the conference is now over. Tom Crean's clubs accomplished that feat the first three years in the league and Williams followed with two of his own.

Also with the loss, MU drops to 9-9 and finishes tied for 9th place in the final Big East standings. With the tiebreakers, MU is the 11th seed and will play either South Florida or Providence in the first round of the Big East Tournament on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden in New York. If MU should win their first round game, they would play West Virginia in the second round. A win tonight would have given MU the 9th seed.

So are the Golden Eagles NCAA bound? They certainly have made things very shaky and certainly no lock. Their RPI is expected to drop to around 67 or so by the completion of today's games. They have no "bad losses" but they have a bunch of losses. Will the committee send 11 teams from the Big East? We all know the NCAA has said they don't give bids based on conferences, but that will be challenged next Sunday night. Regardless, MU is in an absolute must win game on Tuesday night and will play a team that has nothing to lose. The Golden Eagles destroyed Providence last week but barely beat South Florida by one point a few weeks back. Either opponent cannot be taken lightly.

The win by Seton Hall was their first over Marquette since 1955. What else was going on in 1955? Seven in 10 American families owned a motorized car...at an average cost of $1,900. Average wages were $3,851 per year. The first franchised McDonald's was built and the introduction of Coca Cola in a can for the first time appeared in 1955. Gas was 23 cents a gallon, the average house cost $10,950. Disneyland opened in July of 1955. "In God We Trust" was added to US Currency (and no likely some are trying to strip it out). A little old lady named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus in Montgomery, Alabama becoming a major symbol in the fight for civil rights. 1955...the last time Seton Hall beat Marquette.

So have a Coke and a smile everyone