Marquette Basketball: Golden Eagles Need to Avoid Trap Games Before Georgetown

It's almost time to go dancing. But, you can't forget the pregame. 

This year's Marquette Golden Eagles basketball team is one of the best in the school's history. Even without the help of big men Chris Otule and Davante Gardner, the Golden Eagles continue to roll and look to keep their winning steak going.

The team has won four straight and 11 of its last 12. The team looks poised to put on a show against Georgetown for Senior Night. But, the team needs to take care of business first, as two trap games loom in the week before the game. 

The first is against the West Virginia Mountaineers. The Mountaineers have not been playing well recently, losing six of their last eight—three coming from ranked opponents. This is the last chance the Mountaineers get to play a ranked team, and are looking to make a statement that they still deserve to be in March Madness.

A win against Marquette would be the best way to start the final home stand of the year. 

Marquette's other trap game is against Cincinnati, the team Marquette embarrassed on National Marquette Day. Marquette put up 95 in the 17-point win. Cincinnati has been on a three-game winning streak since the loss, with the latest being a four-point win over No. 17 Louisville.

The Bearcats are going to use the momentum to come out to a fast start, and will be looking all game to exact revenge. The Bearcats are the definition of a bubble team, and a win over Marquette would be huge for their resume and would almost guarantee them a ticket to the Big Dance. 

Marquette is a lock for a high seed in both the Big East and March Madness thanks to Darius Johnson-Odom and Jae Crowder, arguably the best tandem in college basketball. They have carried this team to the finish line, and want to go out with a bang. The two are more motivated than ever to beat Georgetown on Senior Night at home.

However, a single loss to either West Virginia or Cincinatti would hurt even more than any Georgetown loss would. The Golden Eagles need to focus on these two games before setting their sights on the Georgetown game.

Marquette looks to be dancing with the cheerleader. A loss to West Virginia or Cincinnati would cause Marquette to end up in the friend zone.