Posted by Graham Watson
BOISE, Idaho -- Who needs
Dominic James when you have
Lazar Hayward?
The junior forward scored Marquette's first 10 points of Friday's first-round game against Utah State at Taco Bell Arena and leads all scorers with 12 in the first half.
Marquette leads 26-18 in a game that many thought would be more competitive than it has been so far.
Hayward's 10 early points were more than Utah State had through the first 14 minutes of the game. And though the Aggies made a frantic push at the end of the half to cut Marquette's lead, which was as big as 12, to eight, the game has never been in doubt for Marquette.
You'd think Utah State would play a little more inspired considering the crowd is in its favor. The entire Utah State student section, which I'm told is about 3,000 strong, appears to be in attendance. Apparently, they call themselves "Spectrum on Wheels." The Aggies' home arena is called the Spectrum.
Utah State needs to get more production out of its best player, Gary Wilkinson. He doesn't appear to be looking for the ball or even boxing out on the offensive glass. He had five points in the first half and he came in averaging more than 17.
The one thing that works in Utah State's favor is the fact that the Aggies are a second-half team. During the semifinals of the WAC tournament, Utah State trailed New Mexico State by 13 and came back to win 71-70. Obviously, Marquette isn't New Mexico State, but the Golden Eagles did come into the tournament having lost five of their past six, and haven't played well since James went down for the season with a broken foot on Feb. 25. If the crowd can continue to will Utah State, this thing might get interesting in the second half.
