DePaul and Marquette Have a Longstanding Rivalry
NEW YORK – Just 90 miles separate Milwaukee, home to the Marquette Golden Eagles and Chicago, home to their longtime rival DePaul.
But, the distance is much closer when it comes to women’s basketball.
Coming off a shared BIG EAST regular-season title and a tournament championship showdown last season won by Blue Demons, the teams were tabbed as co-favorites to win this season in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches’ Poll that was announced at the annual media day at Madison Square Garden on Thursday.
“This rivalry goes back a long way,“ said the venerable DePaul coach Doug Bruno starting his 33
rd season. “We have been fighting with Marquette ever since women’s basketball came on the collegiate stage.”
Due to the proximity of the two schools Bruno says it can generate passion and excitement for fans of both teams like those between Packer and Bear fans and Brewers and Cubs supporters.
“We weren’t picked No. 1 and No. 1A this year, we were both picked No. 1, another year of a great rivalry,“ said Bruno, who has guided the Blue Demons to 16 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. “They are just a really good basketball team and we are a really good basketball team.”
Boasting a lineup of five returning senior starters led by reigning BIG EAST Player of the Year Allazia Blockton, Marquette has been building to this year for the last four seasons.
Having such high expectations will not intimidate her seasoned team said fifth-year coach Carolyn Kieger.
“We want the pressure, they like the pressure,“ Kieger said of her team which has made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances the last two seasons.
“Pressure means that you are doing something well and that you are getting better every year. We welcome it and nobody puts more expectations on us then we do ourselves. But at the end of the day execution beats expectations,” said Kieger.
Adding to the buzz around her team is that all five seniors – Blockton, Erika Davenport, Natisha Hiedeman, Amani Wilborn and Danielle King – have a chance to break the 1,000-point benchmark scored in their careers this year.
“It is hard to put into words,” Kieger said of the five. “They are great teammates. We have been through a lot, a lot of ups and lots of downs. It has not been a walk in the park and not easy. They have trusted each other, and they have trusted me.”
“I want them to have a blast this year, and to remember this year as one of the best of their lives,” said Kieger. “We want the hardest day of the year to be when they take that jersey off.”
And when that time comes, Kieger would like her team to have accomplished something extraordinary.
“At the end of the day we hope that they set the standard for years to come and everybody knows that this is the group that has put us on the map,” she said. “To bring this program to a place where it has never been and leave a legacy.”
And most likely that road will go through Chicago (site of the BIG EAST Tournament venue Wintrust Arena) and the Blue Demons, just a short drive away, but still a long way to go.
“We know that they will be there, they always are,” said Kieger.