Marquette coach Buzz Williams, whose aw-shucks persona cloaks his remarkable basketball IQ and big-picture vision, uttered the quote that should be embraced by every team in March.
“Fortune favors the brave,” he said.
How true. The Big East Tournament is not for the faint of heart.
ST. JOHN’S CAN BURST UCONN’S TOURNAMENT BUBBLE
Surely Walter Berry didn’t hesitate before leaping up to block Pearl Washington’s last-second game-winning layup attempt in the 1986 championship game.
Ray Allen wasn’t thinking failure when he rose up over Allen Iverson for his game-winning, off-balance floater in the 1996 title game.
Gerry McNamara feared no one when he hit shots from Chelsea to Midtown in leading Syracuse to the 2006 crown. Fortune favors the brave.
So whose turn is it to reap the fortune of bravery in this year’s Big East tournament, which begins tomorrow at Madison Square Garden? How about the team whose starting unit is composed of five fearless metropolitan warriors? How about the Mountaineers?
Devin Ebanks of Long Island City, Truck Bryant of Brooklyn, Da’Sean Butler of Newark, Wellington Smith of Summit, N.J., and Kevin Jones of Mount Vernon have transformed Morgantown, W. Va., into a long-distance New York suburb.
Forget New Yorkers, The Post predicts the MetroNeers will claim their first Big East crown.
“I grew up in New York, in Flushing, Queens, and city kids just have a desire about them,” St. Thomas More coach Jere Quinn told The Post. “When they get you down, they put you away. They have a sense of the game.”
Quinn coached Ebanks and freshman Danny Jennings of Staten Island in prep school. He has a long-standing relationship with West Virginia coach Bob Huggins, who is one deep run into the NCAA Tournament away from getting Hall of Fame buzz.
Quinn is an easygoing soul who teaches math when not drilling his players on every aspect of becoming a better player. When Ebanks and Jennings said they wanted to play at West Virginia, Quinn had one piece of advice.
“You have no idea what’s in store for you,” he said. “You think I’m tough? Every one of your practices is going to be taped. You’re going to be watched by four, five coaches and a half-dozen graduate assistants and managers. If there’s a flaw in your game, he’ll find it.”
The Mountaineers are one of the four teams, along with Syracuse, Villanova and Pittsburgh, that will enjoy a precious double-bye in the tournament. The Mountaineers’ 1-3-1 halfcourt trap defense, with the 6-foot-9 Ebanks up top, is a mayhem maker.
Though Syracuse, Villanova, Connecticut and St. John’s should enjoy solid fan support, Mountaineers fans travel. The families of the MetroNeers will not have to travel far.
Wouldn’t it be a sight to watch them cut down the nets? It has been in the back of their minds since media day in October.
“We’re all from the area, so it would be really special to climb that ladder,” Butler said.
lenn.robbins@nypost.com
Handicapping the field
Lenn Robbins breaks down the favorites, sleepers and long shots in the 16-team Big East Tournament, which begins tomorrow:
FAVORITES
1. Syracuse (28-3, 15-3): Jim Boeheim, certain to be the league’s Coach of the Year, has the perfect personnel to play his 2-3 zone defense, and the Orange have great offensive balance.
Post’s Man: Andy Rautins, Jamesville, N.Y.
Odds: 3-1
2. West Virginia (24-6, 13-5): It seems as if every player is 6-foot-5 to 6-foot-9 with the reach of a Na’vi warrior and from the Tri-State area.
Post’s Man: Devin Ebanks, Long Island City.
Odds: 5-1
3. Pitt (24-7, 13-5): Panthers’ love affair with the 35-second shot clock grinds opponents mentally and physically.
Post’s Man: Travon Woodall, Paterson, N.J.
Odds: 7-1.
4. Villanova (24-6, 13-5): Guard U has a winner’s mentality, and Scottie Reynolds is a clutch shot waiting to happen. Double bye helps this undersized squad.
Post’s Man: Corey Fisher, The Bronx.
Odds: 10-1
5. Marquette (20-10, 11-7): Eagles have been in more tough spots than Tiger Woods. First team in league play to win three straight overtime road games.
Post’s Man: Lazar Hayward, Buffalo.
Odds: 15-1
SLEEPERS
6. Louisville (20-11, 11-7): Do you really want to pick against a Rick Pitino-coached team playing the at Garden?
Post’s Man: Manhattan’s Edgar Sosa.
Odds: 25-1
7. Notre Dame (21-10, 10-8): Amazing story playing out as Irish lost Luke Harangody and raised their game. Can they win it, as U2 said, with or without him?
Post’s Man: Tyrone Nash, Queens.
Odds: 50-1.
8. Georgetown (20-9, 10-8): The Hoyas have been shaken by the news that leading scorer Austin Freeman has diabetes, but the star returned during Saturday’s win over Cincinnati.
Post’s Man: Asssistant coach Mike Brennan, Elizabeth, N.J.
Odds: 75-1.
9. Connecticut (17-14, 7-11): A tumultuous year for the Huskies, who lost coach Jim Calhoun for seven games because of illness and have never found a groove. But the talent is there.
Post’s Man: Kemba Walker, The Bronx.
Odds: 100-1.
10. Seton Hall (18-11, 9-9): The Pirates have learned to win grind-it-out games as well as in their fast-paced, shootout style. Can a team that plays in spurts win it all?
Post’s Man: Jeremy Hazell,
The Bronx.
Odds: 125-1.
LONG SHOTS
11. Cincinnati (16-14, 7-11): The Bearcats are lousy from the line (62.3 percent) and the arc (29.3), but Lance Stephenson’s second home is the Garden.
Post’s Man: Lance Stephenson, Brooklyn.
Odds: 250-1
12. St. John’s (16-14, 6-12): The Red Storm might have a home-court advantage and their depth could help. Then again, they only played .500 ball in the Garden.
Post’s Man: Justin Burrell, The Bronx.
Odds: 750-1
13. South Florida (19-11, 9-9): Just when the Bulls had it going, big man Gus Gilchrist returned from injury and they struggled to adjust. Dominique Jones can dominate.
Post’s Man: Jarrid Famous, The Bronx.
Odds: 750-1
14. Rutgers (15-16, 5-13): Scarlet Knights became the first league team to win five conference games after opening 0-8 in the league. Impressive but not enough.
Post’s Man: Mike Rosario,
Jersey City.
Odds: 1,000-1
15. Providence (12-18, 4-14): The Friars can score and score. They allow opponents to score and score and score.
No way to win in this league.
Post’s Man: Jamine Peterson, Brooklyn.
Odds: 1,000-1
16. DePaul (8-22, 1-17): Tough season for the Blue Demons, who saw coach Jerry Wainwright fired early.
Can salvage season with a win.
Post’s Man: Devin Hill,
New Canaan, Conn.
Odds: No one will take action.