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Marquette guard Vander Blue (front) has helped lead the Golden Eagles to within a game of their first Final Four appearance since 2003.
WASHINGTON — More than a month ago, Buzz Williams stood in the interview room at the Prudential Center and was given the chance to do what most coaches would love to do: Tout a star player for Big East Player of the Year. Williams refused to take the bait.
It seemed like a strange thing to do at the time. Vander Blue had just scored 19 points for the second straight game to help Marquette rout Seton Hall on the road and was becoming the catalyst for one of the league's most unlikely stories. Marquette, which had been picked to finish seventh in the league's preseason poll, was on its way to
securing a three-way tie for the regular-season crown.
So why did Williams pass up the chance to make a case? Simple: He knew Blue would never win it and there were more important things to worry about.
"And I was right," Williams deadpanned Thursday night after his team beat Miami to reach the Elite Eight. "And everybody said I was being stupid."
Blue didn’t win the award. He didn’t even make the Big East’s six-member first team. All of the accolades that could have easily been bestowed upon the Golden Eagles’ junior guard passed him by, but during the past month, Blue has helped spearhead Marquette’s run to within one game of the school’s first Final Four since 2003.
Not bad for a guy who spent most of the season embodying his team’s persona: overlooked.
"I wouldn’t say that sparked it," Blue said when asked if that game against Seton Hall began his personal run in the last five weeks. "I guess it’s just the longer you are playing, the better you should start playing, I would say. I just wanted to help the team as much as I can, and being one of the leaders on this team, I know what the guys expect from me."
In the past 10 games — beginning with that 19-point night in the 67-46 win at Seton Hall — Blue has averaged 14.7 points per game. The Golden Eagles have lost just twice during that time — on the road at Villanova on Feb. 23 and in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament against Notre Dame on March 14. And he has done more than just score — he’s scored at key moments.
Blue has made two critical, game-winning baskets. The first came in the regular-season finale, in overtime at St. John’s, to help Marquette grab that share of the Big East title.
The second came one week ago in Marquette’s first game in the NCAA Tournament. After a furious last-minute rally, Blue’s layup with one second to play allowed Marquette to squeak out a second-round victory and advance.
"I’ve been mentally and physically locked in these last couple of months," Blue said. "Because I wanted to do something special for Junior (Cadougan) and Trent (Lockett)."
He has put Marquette on the verge of doing just that.
"He was a second-team all-conference player," Williams said after that Miami win. "He was the only all-conference player on our team. When I said that at Seton Hall — everybody thinks I'm trying to skew
my words. I'm as transparent as anybody you talk to. . . .
"And when the year was over and we won a share of the league, prior to arriving in New York, he was a second-team all-conference player.
"There are six players that are either first team or player of the year."
Brendan Prunty: bprunty@starledger.com; Twitter: @BrendanPrunty