Milwaukee and Marquette square off for bragging rights

Dec 22, 2011 - 3:52 PM Milwaukee, WI (Sports Network) - Local rivals will collide at the Bradley Center tonight, as the 10th-ranked Marquette Golden Eagles entertain the Milwaukee Panthers.

Milwaukee enters with an impressive 9-3 record, but it can be argued that none of those nine victories have come over a quality opponent. The Panthers recently lost back-to-back games to solid foes before getting back on track last Saturday with an 86-50 romp over Nebraska-Omaha. Milwaukee has played two Horizon League games to date and won them both.

As for Marquette, which will soon begin a brutal Big East Conference slate, it was one of the nation's lone remaining undefeated teams heading into Monday's clash with LSU in Baton Rouge. Unfortunately, that game ended in a 67-59 defeat. On a positive note, the Golden Eagles are 5-0 at home and figure to play with plenty of confidence this evening.

Milwaukee has lost all 10 previous matchups with Marquette, including a 75-72 setback a season ago.

While Milwaukee lacks the type of player capable of routinely dominating games at the offensive end of the court, the club does boast four double-digit scorers. Kaylon Williams leads the way with 12.6 ppg and 6.0 apg, while Tony Meier provides 11.3 ppg. James Haarsma adds 10.1 ppg and 7.3 rpg, while Ja'Rob McCallum rounds out the foursome with 10.0 ppg. The Panthers are generating 65.8 ppg, a rather modest average, but they have been able to hold opponents to 58.0 ppg on 39.1 percent field goal efficiency. In the 36-point victory over Nebraska-Omaha, Meier scored 19 points to pace his squad, while Williams tallied 17 points and eight assists. Milwaukee earned a 41-32 rebounding advantage in the affair and finished with 21 assists against only 10 turnovers.

The duo of Darius Johnson-Odom and Jae Crowder has been tremendously productive for Marquette so far this season. Johnson-Odom is scoring 18.5 ppg on 49.6 percent shooting from the field, and Crowder provides 18.0 ppg to go along with 7.3 rpg. Vander Blue (10.9 ppg) and Todd Mayo (10.2 ppg) add some offensive balance to the roster for the Golden Eagles, who are generating an impressive 81.7 ppg while holding opponents to 62.5 ppg on 38.4 percent shooting. Obviously, the offensive showing against LSU on Monday fell way below Marquette's average output, as the 59 points came on 36.2 percent shooting from the floor. The Golden Eagles yielded 53.5 percent shooting to LSU and also finished the tilt with more than twice as many turnovers as assists. Crowder poured in 22 points, while Johnson-Odom added 16 points.