The argument has gone on for ages. Over the past few years, men’s basketball in the state of Wisconsin has become an increasingly strong component of the NCAA.

With the assertion of three programs making routine trips to the postseason, it is only natural for the fans of each school to beg for a series against each of the other squads.

As the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men’s basketball team has had a fast rise to national prominence with advances in the NCAA tournament each of the past two years, fans of Milwaukee wonder, why won’t Marquette play UWM?

It all began four years ago, as UWM was preparing to defeat Butler in the Horizon League Championship game. Televised on Fox Sports Net, a growing chant among the Klotsche Krazies, Milwaukee’s student section, was “We want Mar-quette!”

Since then, the conversation has arisen occasionally. Marquette’s stance in past years has always been that their only in-state rival is the University of Wisconsin, the other “high-major” school.

However, Wisconsin plays both UWM and UW-Green Bay, something that Marquette has refused to do until very recently.

Marquette head basketball coach Tom Crean sent an offer to UWM on Sept. 12 that drew out a plan to have Milwaukee hosting only one of five games in the deal. College basketball works out that the host teams do not have to share profits in home-and-home deals unless they choose to do so. However, the home-and-home portion of the deal covers only the final two games.

The first three games of this series would be guaranteed, also known as “buy” games. This is where the host school, in this case Marquette, gives the visiting squad a set amount of money for coming to the game. Then Marquette makes all the profits off the home game.

Usually, some of the guarantee money is spent on traveling and hotel expenses. Obviously, this will not be the case for UWM. Milwaukee stands to put more of the guaranteed money into the program. Crean is not interested in anything less for Marquette.

While four games at the Bradley Center and one at the U.S. Cellular Arena may seem like a rip-off, consider that Wisconsin and UWM signed a similar deal back in 2002.

Milwaukee may have been to the Sweet 16 and all that since then, but Marquette has been to the Final Four, something Wisconsin hasn’t done. Marquette has produced one of the five biggest stars in the NBA in Dwyane Wade.

The most successful Badger alumni of the last four years has been Devin Harris, a player with a small role on a Dallas squad that lost to a Miami team that starred Wade.

What Milwaukee fans have to ask themselves is it that much of a problem to go to an arena that is closer to campus?

Conventional wisdom says Milwaukee should not accept a deal that would pay them under $50,000 per guaranteed game. Even that is low-balling it, as $75,000 is a more acceptable number.

Whatever that number is will be determined before UWM Athletic Director Bud Haidet and men’s basketball coach Rob Jeter sign anything.

As things are worked out, excitement is in the air at UWM. A new season, a clean slate with new recruits entering the program is just around the corner. The only other division one school in the city will finally play Milwaukee. The series is set to begin next season, in either November or December.

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