Big East brawl pits Orange against Golden Eagles

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/07/2009 - Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of strong Big East Conference teams are set to close out the regular season in Milwaukee this afternoon, as the 13th-ranked Marquette Golden Eagles play host to the 25th-ranked Syracuse Orange.

Syracuse has won its last three games to move to 22-8 overall and 10-7 in league play, seemingly eliminating any doubt about the team's prospects for the upcoming NCAA Tournament. The Orange crushed Rutgers on Tuesday in a 70-40 final and won 16 of their 19 home games during the regular season. Today, they will attempt to even their road record at 5-5.

Marquette has fallen on hard times in recent games, as the club has lost its last two outings to fall out of the race for the conference title. The Golden Eagles are 23-7 overall and 12-5 in league play, but they haven't been the same since losing standout guard Dominic James for the season with an injury. To be fair, however, it is important to point out that the three losses during the current slide have come against UConn, Louisville and Pittsburgh, the three best teams in the Big East.

Today's game marks the only scheduled meeting of the season between the Orange and the Golden Eagles, and Syracuse owns a 5-2 advantage in the all-time series.

There is no shortage of talent in the Syracuse lineup, as the team is capable of beating anyone, anywhere. Point guard Jonny Flynn is a sensational performer who averages 17.0 ppg and has dished out 191 assists. He has started all 30 games thus far, the only member of the team who can make that claim. Eric Devendorf scores 15.4 ppg for the Orange, who are getting 13.0 ppg and 7.9 rpg from Paul Harris. Arinze Onuaku (10.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg) and Andy Rautins (10.0 ppg) bring further balance to the lineup for Syracuse, which is posting 79.9 ppg while allowing 70.5 ppg. Harris scored 18 points to lead the onslaught against Rutgers on Tuesday. The Orange played stellar defense, forcing 20 turnovers while limiting the Scarlet Knights to 25.4 percent shooting from the field.

On Wednesday, Marquette suffered a 90-75 loss to an outstanding Pittsburgh squad on the road. The Golden Eagles struggled mightily at the defensive end of the floor, as they permitted the Panthers to shoot 63 percent overall. Jerel McNeal scored a team-high 23 points in the setback, but he made good on only 8-of-24 field goal attempts. Lazar Hayward contributed 22 points and 10 rebounds, while Wesley Matthews added 16 points. Those three players are sure to be the keys to the team's success in the postseason. McNeal is scoring 19.9 ppg, and he has dished out 120 assists to go with 64 steals. Matthews checks in with 18.7 ppg, and he is shooting 51.5 percent from the floor. Hayward, the team's leading rebounder with 8.6 rpg, is netting 16.1 ppg for Marquette, which is posting 79.1 ppg while allowing 69.5 ppg.

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Huskers' Lucky hospitalized for undisclosed reason

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraska running back Marlon Lucky was hospitalized Monday for undisclosed reasons after Lincoln police responded to a call at his residence.

The Nebraska athletic department said in a release Monday that Lucky was admitted Sunday night.

MySportsbook.com has the Cornhuskers listed at +2500 to win the BCS National Championship odds.

A nursing supervisor at the hospital said all questions about Lucky were being referred to the athletic department. The athletic department said there would be no further comment from the department or Lucky's family.

A Lincoln Police spokesman said officers responded to a call at Lucky's residence 11:30 p.m. Sunday. The spokesman said he didn't know Lucky's condition at the time he was taken to the hospital.

Lucky, from North Hollywood, Calif., started six games last season as a sophomore and was the team's second-leading rusher, with 728 yards and six touchdowns. He also caught 32 passes for 383 yards. He averaged 19.1 yards on eight kickoff returns.

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