SHANE SOUTHWELL TALKS MARQUETTE

October 28, 2008


Over the weekend, Marquette launched their 2008-2009 season for their fans by hosting a 'Marquette Madness' event, debuting this year's team and new coach Buzz Williams. With all the excitement around the program for the weekend, it was also a great opportunity to bring in some top recruits for them to get a feel of the atmosphere that is Marquette basketball.

Since taking over at Marquette, coach Williams has been working hard on the recruiting trail. With a senior class in place that includes Wes Mathews, Jerel McNeal and Dominic James, Williams knows that recruiting will keep the NCAA Basketball Odds of reaching the NCAA Tournament in the Golden Eagles' favor, and using 'Marquette Madness' as a recruiting tool is a wise move.

One recruit that made the trip was New York City forward Shane Southwell. The class of 2010 prospect out of powerful Rice High School and the NY Gauchos program made the trip to the midwest with his mom for the weekend's events.

"Marquette was great, everybody showed me love especially Wesley Matthews and Dwight Burke," Southwell told the NBE Basketball Report.

While a kid from NYC may not be too familair with the Milwaukee-based program, the history of the Marquette program is impressive and the era of Al McGuire definitely catches one's attention when shown off to a recruit visiting. With mega-NBA star Dwyane Wade also on display as well and a supportive fan base, there is a lot for a recruit to take in.

"The lasting impression or highlight was looking at walls and seeing all the NBA players and the history of Marquette," Southwell explained. "Another highlight is how great the fans are."

Being just a junior, Southwell seems in no hurry to make a college decision. He has interest from several other schools in the Big East and powers from other conferences as well. The Golden Eagles definitely rate high on this junior's list.

"Marquette is probably the leader right now if I was senior, but its still a lot of time left and my dream school is Memphis," indicated Southwell.