How does second place in the Big East sound?

Public Enemy Number One: James Breeding. The worst part? The refs won't be held accountable for that disaster they were responsible for. Nor will the refs of the West Virginia-Syracuse game. Who is mostly to blame? Coaches. The coaches would much rather deal with familiar refs than a new crop of officials.

To those who whine and cry about the nightmarish starts: Would you rather them breakout to a 13-0 lead, then lose? Or have a 18 point lead, and lose? I'll take a slow start every damn time, as long as they finish in the W column. This team has won far more games in Big East play coming from behind than holding on to a lead.

I've been spending way too much time on Twitter lately during the games because the Marquette fans on there whine like little high school girls. The "I REFUSE TO ENJOY THIS GREAT COMEBACK" mantra by some fans because of a bad start is just pathetic. This team is currently in second place in the Big East. Sad some people focus so much on the negative than the positive. Stupid Twitter.

As a huge fan of the Jesuits (eight years of Jesuit education will do that), I found this post and their new website a breath of fresh air to the interwebs.

This takes me back to Freshman year at Marquette.

Public intoxication? Black tears of pain.

This is why I'm proud of my Irish heritage.

Happy Monday: Happy Mondays return.

I love bacon, but this is just weird.

I hope you've eaten, because this is disgusting.

They found out when it was a good day!

You are worthless and weak compared to this kid.

311 meets Sesame Street.

Brilliant? Yes, brilliant.

This Adele/Doug Melvin parody is genius.

Like Wilco/Old 97's? Check out True Mad North.

Marquette Basketball Links:
It's the James Breeding Show!
Did you miss the Bo Ryan - Tom Crean faceoff?
Moxie is a mantra for Marquette. Bonus video w/ DJO.
DJO gets it right.
James Breeding, you are a joke.
AP game recap.
It was the refs fault.
Jamal Ferguson has been nominated to the McDonald's All-American team.
Sports Bank power rankings: Marquette #3.

Random Music Video: Sugar & The Hi-Lows (bonus download 3 songs for free)

I apologize to the Admiral's seven readers for the lack of a Coffee yesterday. I spent all day reading the New Yorker piece on the raid on The House of Osama and, when I finally looked up, the morning was long-since over.

Here's your morning whimsy, courtesy of BrewTown Andy:

I'd already seen pictures of Fat Rob McElhenney for the upcoming season of It's Always Sunny, but I hadn't seen a video yet. This, my friends, is dedication to craft. Dude better win an Emmy.

If Jay Cutler and Kristin Cavallari can't make it work in this crazy, mixed-up world, I don't know what hope there is for the rest of us. Oh, wait: yes I do.  There's hope if we don't accuse our mates of faking injury in the most important game of their careers.

Kings of Leon canceled their U.S. tour, reportedly because front man Caleb Followill is suffering from "vocal issues and exhaustion." If that sounds like nonsense to you, it's probably because it is: bassist Jared Followill wrote on Twitter: "I know you guys aren't stupid. I can't lie. There are problems in our band bigger than not drinking enough Gatorade."

"Reporting live from Amii Park, I'm ... Amy Parks."

I was surprised to see that Assistant Crack Whore didn't make this list.

ThunderCats is back? That's the best news I've heard today. Now get me SilverHawks and Voltron and M.A.S.K. back in the rotation and six-year-old Rubie will be your bestest friend forever.

I, too, wanna be Mrs. Velociraptor someday. (h/t to Mrs. Q)

If you're into the college football thing: Mark Ennis of SBN's Big East Coast Bias is doing a bang-up job covering the Big East media days this week.

Marquette Basketball Links

We already knew that Marquette was heading to Maui as part of a star-studded field for the 2012 Maui Invitational, but we didn't know that MU's heading to Anaheim for the 76 Classic in 2013 and is returning to the Old Spice Classic in Orlando in 2014.

Yahoo!'s Jason King filed his revised preseason Top 25 and tabbed Marquette at No. 13 -- one of five Big East programs in his top 15.

ESPN's College Basketball Nation blog took a look around the Big East and said that Marquette (and Cincinnati) won't sneak up on anybody this year.

Former MU point guard and current USC assistant coach Tony Miller will be inducted into the Marquette M Club Hall of Fame on August 20, a long-overdue honor for Marquette's leader in career assists.

Cracked Sidewalks did something with math, which, unsurprisingly, went a bit over my head. But it seems to confirm that Jimmy Butler was really good this year, so: I dig.

Mr. Kensington and Soft Pretzel With Cheese took in a night of action at the Milwaukee Pro-Am, and Mr. K provided a run down on what he saw.

BrewTown Andy put on his reporter hat -- I don't know where he found it, because I don't think it's ever been used here before -- and took a look at season tickets around the Big East.

COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY VIDEO OF THE DAY

I don't know why, but I've had Blondie in my head for the last week. Congratulations: now you do, too.

So yesterday I was all like "yeah" then I was "boo" and then back to "yeah" and apparently if I still cared about rasslin', I would have lost my mind.

Least Shocking List to find Badgers on.

THIS. Especially in Wisconsin.

This is a pretty good concert line up in September. (Well Fitz & Folds, that is)

Greatest. Headline. Ever.

The Truffle Shuffle lives on.

Best rock riffs of all time?

Saddest mugshots? Nonsense, those are awesome.

Wisconsin Poncho, dude don't you know? (Win a DVD!)

Marquette Basketball Links:
BrewTownAndy weaved Star Wars into a post about our schedule.
I hate every single one of you who voted for "Vice President of Sales."
BrewTownAndy has even more news and notes for you.
"Best of" Cracked Sidewalks Warrior Travels.
Buzz offered a LaCrosse kid a scholarship.
A ring doesn't define Jim Chones.
Curious if Buzz has any connections to this story.
Rick Pitino was all like: we need divisions and then the other coaches were like, um, no.

Random Music Video: Noah & The Whale

In about twelve hours, we'll learn where Marquette's Jimmy Butler will continue his basketball career. It seems a virtual certainty that Jimmy is going to hear his name called at some point during tonight's NBA Draft; the question is where Jimmy's headed. Here's the latest scuttlebutt as we approach go time:

In iteration 7.0 of his much-ballyhooed NBA mock draft, ESPN's Chad Ford has the Boston Celtics -- and former Marquette guard Doc Rivers -- selecting Jimmy with the 25th pick of the first round. (That's an Insider story, so I'm not going to quote from it. You'll have to trust me on that one.)

SBN's NBA bloggers are conducting a mock draft of their own, and the New Jersey Nets-devoted site, NetsDaily, snatched Jimmy up with the 27th pick in the first round:

A solid defender, hard worker, and impressive young man, Butler ranked third in the Big East in free throws attempted per game this year, as well as 2nd last year. The man knows how to get to the line, and the Nets have been missing someone who can attack the rim from the perimeter.

On ESPN's TrueHoop blog, Peter Newmann and Dean Oliver list JMFB as one of the draft's best bargains:

Butler, a senior, is a versatile wing player who doesn't make a lot of mistakes and can do the understated things a coach looks for -- play defense, hit the opportunistic shot and grab more rebounds than his opponent.

And on ESPNBoston.com, Chris Forsberg has an in-depth look at Butler, listing him as one of players that's high on the Celtics' wish list:

His workouts, by virtually all accounts, have been stellar. He won the MVP award at the Portsmouth Invitational. He impressed scouts with a strong performance at the Chicago pre-draft combine. He's drawn praise from virtually every NBA scout and GM who has worked him out. But it's been the interview process that has created the most buzz.

NBC's ProBasketballTalk blog tabs Jimmy as one of the players you hope falls to your team in the second round -- and at this point, it might save space to list all the sites that don't list JMFB as one of the Draft's potential steals:

He actually has a little Landry Fields in him - one of those guys who can do a little bit of everything well. The key is he can defend so that should get him minutes.

SI.com's Seth Davis talked to an NBA scout about forty of the potential draftees, and the scout paid the nicest compliment possible when asked about Butler:

Typical Marquette guy.

Last but not least: the Journal Sentinel's Todd Rosiak asked Jimmy about his plans for watching the Draft:

Jimmy Butler's plans? They're about as low-key as the former Marquette Golden Eagles forward is himself.

"I think we're going to go to Chuck E. Cheese so my brother can rip around and play," he said from Portland, Ore., last week, where he was nearing the end of a cross-country tour that will have seen him work out for 14 NBA teams at its conclusion.

So the righteous Mr Rogers look of a sweater vest was just for show? I mean, this is college athletics; nobody is really surprised, are they? Most people realize this goes on at every school, right? It's just that most schools are better at hiding it. Note to schools/coaches: Don't lie to the NCAA, they hate that. Considering UW's track record of NCAA violations, I've found the handwringing from their fan base a bit hypocritical.

Tupac ain't dead, he's just chillin' in New Zealand.

The records labels keep wondering why sales are down.

Stop talking and make this happen already.

Weezer covering Radiohead? No thanks.

Huh. I thought Avril Lavigne was dead.

Lots of people went to see The Hangover 2. But they're going to kill it.

If you happen to like Gavin Degraw, he's playing a free show.

Marquette Basketball Related:
Dear DA Chisholm: If you have charges, bring them. Otherwise, shut your yapper. Pathetic grandstanding on his part.

For those of you keeping score at home: Coaches w/ players charged with a crime - Bo Ryan 2, Buzz 0.

The new kids have their numbers chosen.

Help us name Jim Burr.

The women's team landed a recruit.

Huh. JJ Barea was recruited by Marquette.

NY Times story on D-Wade with lots of MU mentions.

Where is the Big East heading?

Catching up with the Big East.

Tex Winter is finally getting his due.

JMFB to the Pistons?

Apparently, we're going after this kid from Chicago.

Pity DePaul.

Bart Lundy gets interviewed here. Fact: Bart Lundy once looked at me with a look that said "Really? You're that stupid?"

Something smells fishy in Indiana and it also includes former Badger Duany Duany.

I still don't understand why this page is still live.

Loser Badger fan of the week.


Random Music Video: Foster The People. Guilty pleasure record of the summer.

Deceased.

Newspaper headlines from across the globe on the death of bin Laden.

TV and Social Media did pretty good last night.

Some guy accidentally tweeted the raid?  Whoa.

Sports provides backdrop and perspective.

And last, but not least - THIS. (Possibly NSFW)

I don't know how to say this, but I'm kind of a big deal. My elbow was in the paper last week.

Then I got a taste of home on Friday night. I was then Tapped.

Lorenzo Lamas: well done sir.

Fast Five? Really America? This is why we can't have nice things.

Winnie Cooper, still looking good.

Marquette Links:
D-Wade won yesterday.
Marquette vs. FAU?
Jerel played really well in the D-League finals.
McNeal's risk is paying off.
Rosiak wakes up from his nap at Miller Park and writes about MU.
Marquette on the rise for next season.
This kid likes Buzz a lot.
Why draft Jimmy Butler?
11th Place? Not bad. Not bad at all.

Random Music Video: Beastie Boys

I hope everyone had a lovely Easter and is dragging from a post-Peeps sugar withdrawal.

Rumor is Mrs Rubie Q might be taking over the blog on Friday. (Not confirmed.)

This chick is kind of a butter face, but still, damn.

JSOnline launched a new Entertainment section today.

I'm not sayin', but I'm on Twitter a lot.

Dads: The Original Hipsters.

Awesome.

So why a picture of UW fans on our site? Well AE was bombarded by Badger fans last week. Why? Vander Blue. The most clicks came from the Badgers Scout Board: five times more traffic than any other website. Obsess much about a player who's not even on your team getting a municipal citation? Seriously, Badger fans: get a life. It's a citation. It's not like he was arrested on charges of burglary and possession of stolen property.

Marquette links:
Who will be the next Wesley Matthews?
Help us name Jim Burr.
Rubie spells out the next steps in Vander's case.
Matthews already one of best MU alums in the NBA, all-time?
Jerel McNeal had 20 points last night.
Someone thinks we give out too many awards.
Big East needs to reconsider adding Nova.
Vander Blue needs to grow up.

Random Music Video: Kinto Sol - En Un Bar

Hello America, you've just been Schwartzel'd.

I can't wait for when Mrs. Rubie Q takes over the blog.

Drawback of Mrs Q running the site? She won't link to this.

Seriously people: submit your names for Jim Burr.

The 80's + NBA + Hall & Oates -- with a special 3 goggles appearance!

Good music for a good cause.

Star Wars alphabet poster.

A real life Ariel as a hipster.

Meet the new Zod.

Winnie Cooper has still got it.

Get your old school heavy metal on this morning.

Marquette Basketball Links:
"He's not a wow factor player. He's just a player": JMFB is the MVP of the Portsmouth tourney. His NBA stock keeps rising.
Hey, look at that: we finished #20!
SI's Luke Winn has Marquette at #19 in his preseason poll.
NBC Sports has MU at #23.
Fox Sports Jeff Goodman slates MU at #25.
ESPN's Andy Katz has MU at #14.
A little bit on Juan Anderson.
The Big East helped UConn win the title.
A broadcast review of CBS's coverage of the tourney.
MU alum, Jon Harris, talks about his new gig at Tennessee.
Tony Kimbro is receiving interest from MU.
Pay the college kids.

Random Music Video: Atomic Tom - Lame cover, but not so lame video