The offense had been stagnant all night, yet Marquette clung to a two-point lead in the second half against Syracuse.

Sophomore Dominic James stepped to the line for three foul shots and a chance to give the Golden Eagles breathing room in a game where there had been none.,”

You could feel it coming.

The offense had been stagnant all night, yet Marquette clung to a two-point lead in the second half against Syracuse.

Sophomore Dominic James stepped to the line for three foul shots and a chance to give the Golden Eagles breathing room in a game where there had been none. The first was a brick. The second, too. And then the third.

That's when the booing began at the Bradley Center.

"I don't get caught up in it," James said with a grimace. "The booing: I really don't like it, but it makes me better. And it makes me stronger as a player."

He lets his guard down for a moment.

"Yeah, it hurt," he said. "Especially at home, it kind of hurt."

Naturally, it would. Last year's Big East Rookie of the Year had led his team to a double-digit win over Duke several weeks earlier, a game he dominated with 25 points, seven assists and one turnover. Six days later, he scored Marquette's last 18 points, including the game-winner, at Valparaiso.

But the team had hit a midseason slump, losing by double digits to Providence and Syracuse in three days' time. It is easy to name statistical reasons for the rough conference start, like weak rebounding (Marquette 70, opponents 86), shaky shot selection (34.4 percent) or abysmal three-point shooting (8-of-44).

Whispers that this was an NIT team circulated the city. One month and seven wins later, the thought seems laughable. Why? Well, D.J.

"It's outstanding: the decision-making, reading the game and just playing with great confidence," head coach Tom Crean said. "I think he knows that that the No. 1 earmark for a point guard (is) how you take care of the basketball. I think everything else is kind of flowing from there. He's really making a lot of progress."

Certainly role players like Ousmane Barro and Dan Fitzgerald have improved of late, too. But the biggest difference between the two losses and the current seven-game win streak has been James. During the defeats, he shot 1-of-15 from outside; during the streak, he has shot a respectable 38.9 percent (15-of-39) from downtown.

The evidence that James is Marquette's most valuable player lies in the sharp contrast between his play in wins versus losses.

Never mind a team-MVP. ESPN analyst Andy Katz recently cited James in a column about national player of the year candidates, penning James as an outside shot at college's highest individual accolade.

Don't tell James that, though. He'll just launch into a minute-and-a-half-long spiel about his teammates.

"Even besides Wesley (Matthews), Jerel (McNeal) and myself," James said, "Fitzgerald can come in and knock down a shot, Cubillan's been stepping up, even Ouse has been a factor in the post. I'm just getting those guys involved, you know, getting guys their touches. And the more I do that, the more it's going to open things up for myself late in games."

Sure, he exudes an on-court swagger that diverges from his off-court humility. But when you're that good, why not?

James knows he can improve, though, and he said he studies NBA point guards on film. Two-time MVP Steve Nash's name pops up more than once, and then he analyzes Maverick guard Jason Terry's ability not only to bury pull-up jumpers, but also to get teammates good looks when they're on. Soon, he returns to Nash, though.

"I'm trying to pick up the good things that Steve does," James said. "And he's an unbelievable guard. Hopefully, I can be that good some day."

Until he gets that chance, Marquette fans will selfishly hope it comes later rather than sooner.

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