Pressing Razorbacks clip wings of Eagles
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Fatigue didn't make cowards out of Marquette, but it cost the Golden Eagles their second-round NCAA Tournament game with the Arkansas Razorbacks.
"It is tough to survive against them, the way they keep coming at you," Marquette Coach Mike Deane said after Arkansas' 65-56 victory Saturday. "The only team we have faced like that is Memphis, and this Razorback team is bigger, stronger and more talented."
Marquette swept Memphis in the regular season. The Razorbacks lost 94-72 to Memphis, but that was in January, when pressure defense was still on the drawing board for Arkansas Coach Nolan Richardson. When the Razorbacks received an NCAA Tournament bid, Richardson decided to unleash the attack. The Golden Eagles paid the price.
"Their press was effective on both ends of the court," said Deane, whose team shot a season-low 26.8 percent from the field. "We got some good shots and just missed them. As the game wore on, their pressure wore us out, and we took some bad shots, too. You can't do that against a team like Arkansas."
The Razorbacks shot 31.2 percent from the field, but took 21 more shots and scored 25 points off rebounds.
"It took a hell of an effort on our part to make them shoot that bad," Deane said.
The turning point came with 8:31 to play. Arkansas forward Derek Hood had just given the Razorbacks a 49-48 lead, but before Marquette could inbound the ball, Kareem Reid and Zack McCall were called for a double foul.
The possession arrow favored the Razorbacks, and Landis Williams took advantage of the situation with a layup.
Williams then made a steal that Hood converted into a short jumper for a 5348 lead with 7:40 to play.
"That call came at a critical juncture in the game," Deane said. "We had gotten some momentum and then lost the ball. I'm not sure what happened, so I won't comment on it until after I look at it on film. But after that we started playing faster and faster because we were behind, and that just complicated our problem with fatigue."
Golden Eagles senior Roney Eford summed it up simply. "You have to give them credit," he said. "They do what they do best, and it worked. Their press was effective and wore us down."