By Jackson Gross (@JGrossReporter)
Marquette has filled out the final player on its roster for this season, potentially.
The Golden Eagles announced last Thursday that they had landed fifth-year point guard Colin Porter out of Liberty University. In the release, head coach Shaka Smart gave his thoughts on the latest addition to the roster.
“We’re thrilled to be adding the person and player that Colin is,” Smart said. “He’s a strong cultural fit who possesses excellent basketball IQ, poise and maturity. Colin’s shooting, ballhandling and passing will bolster our backcourt immediately.”
A four-year starter with the Flames, Porter averaged 9.0 points, 3.9 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game for his career in Lynchburg, shooting 43 percent from the field and 38.4 percent (4.0 three-point attempts per game) from beyond the arc. He has had a strong assist rate over his career as well, as in his first three seasons, he ranked in the Top 400 in the country per KenPom. That number did drop a little bit this past season, but that was due to Zach Cleveland finishing in the Top 25 in assist rate.
Porter brings some stability as another backup guard to Nigel James, Jr., and is a good insurance option with Nash Walker recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. He’s also a knockdown free-throw shooter to boot, shooting at an incredible 91.1 percent last season.
The one big knock on Porter, outside of his size, is how well he has played against some of the better teams across college basketball. KenPom uses a tier system, and the best are Tier A+B opponents: Top 100 teams, adjusted for home versus road situations. In those games, Porter shot just 41 percent from inside the three-point line, compared to his 50 percent in the last two seasons. For context, Marquette played 21 games against A+B teams this past season (15 Big East games, five non-conference games, and one Big East Tournament game). It remains to be seen where these teams end up, but the Golden Eagles have five of those games in their non-conference schedule based on last year’s results (Michigan, Virginia, Texas A&M, Missouri, Wisconsin) and could have been six, but Mississippi State was ranked at 102. All other Big East Teams finished in the Top 100, so this will definitely be a step up in competition for Porter.
I wasn’t the first person to make this comparison, and I won’t be the last, but there is a lot of Andrew Rowsey in Porter’s game between the quickness and shifty moves, ability to get to the rim, and his shooting touch. Marquette fans are hopeful he has the same swagger as Rowsey did as a scrappy, fun-loving point guard.
Andrew Rowsey – Marquette – Ultimate Highlight Mix (2017-18 Season)
Porter’s eligibility, like many other student-athletes this offseason, is somewhat up in the air. Normally, a collegiate player gets four years of eligibility, which can be spread out over five years if he or she has a redshirt (potentially six with a medical redshirt). Since Porter played all four years, his college eligibility would presumably be over. Still, because the NCAA approved the five-year/five-season rule over the summer, he is part of a group of 50 graduating basketball players who are suing the NCAA, challenging the rule that players who graduated this year aren’t eligible for that fifth year. As for the state of the case, Anonymous Eagle wrote that early indications from all the courts involved suggest the players seeking a fifth year will likely prevail.
We’ll have to wait and see what happens in the courtroom, but if it goes the way it seems to be pointing to, Porter will be a plus for Marquette on the court.
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