Stanford center Brook Lopez took a pass from junior guard Mitch Johnson near the right block, turned quickly to his right and in one continuous motion shot the ball over the outstretched arms of Marquette center Dwight Burke.

He fell to the ground, watching from behind the backboard as the shot rattled around the rim. The ball fell through the net with only 1.3 seconds left on the clock. With it fell Marquette's hopes of securing a berth in the Sweet 16 of the 2008 NCAA Tournament. Stanford had won an 82-81 decision in overtime.

Playing for senior center Ousmane Barro, who had fouled out in regulation, Burke had grabbed three rebounds and scored three points. In the locker room after the game, though, all he could think about was that final shot.

"I feel like I let my team down," Burke said then.

That isn't a new theme for the Marquette men's basketball team. For three years now, the Golden Eagles have relied on the three-pronged guard attack of Jerel McNeal, Dominic James and Wesley Matthews. For three years, an admittedly unbalanced Marquette team has made an early exit from the NCAA Tournament.

Heading into this season, the Marquette post appears thinner than usual. Barro graduated, and would-be sophomore Trevor Mbakwe transferred in the offseason. Who remains is Burke, the senior, unproven sophomore Patrick Hazel and the even more unproven freshman, Chris Otule.

Among those three Burke is expected to be the starter and the leader of a front line that couldn't be more overlooked.

"People have been kind of putting down our front line and in a way kind of disrespecting us," said Burke, who averaged 2.5 points and 2.9 rebounds last year. "I take it to heart . I'm not really mad about it, I'm just looking forward to showing people we do have a front line and we're going to surprise people."

To that end, Burke spent his offseason in the gym working to get stronger while maintaining his quickness. He doesn't possess ideal height for a Big East-caliber center, standing 6-foot-8, but at 250 pounds he can find position in the lane.

Burke said he also developed a midrange jumper in an effort to use his speed as an advantage over bigger players in the post.

"I did a lot of work on my body, you know, getting stronger, faster," he said. "That's the big focus, you know, getting stronger but being able to stay agile."

Still, new Marquette coach Buzz Williams will likely need a to rely on a team effort — and some imported help — to shore up the Golden Eagles' frontcourt deficiencies. Hazel managed to appear in just 14 games last season, and barely made a mark when he did play.

"How good we will become, is dependent upon our newcomers," Williams said. "For us to have a great level of success, we're going to rely on guys having expanded roles.

"What we've got to figure out is how we're going to defend, how we're going to keep the ball out of the paint . we've got to learn how to rebound our position and rebound out of our position."

Of course, Williams will also have the luxury of using the 6-foot-10 Otule off the bench. His role is expected to be one that is simple, but vital.

"My role on this team is to be active inside, be able to play defense and just rebound," Otule said. "If we can rebound a lot, we can go real, real far."

And there is no question among the returning players how important the development of the Marquette post players — Burke in particular — will be to the Golden Eagles' overall goals.

"Dwight knows exactly what he has to do, and if he doesn't do that job he won't be on the court," James said. "He understands that. His role is simple. If you want to play, you have to rebound and do all the little things . if he continues to improve on a day-to-day basis he'll be able to help this team."