NEW YORK — Marquette men’s basketball (12-19, 7-13 Big East) is in the Big Apple in need of something miraculous.
To qualify for the NCAA tournament for the fifth time in five years under head coach Shaka Smart, the No. 7 seed Golden Eagles will need to win four games in four days to earn the conference’s automatic bid to ‘The Big Dance.’
Marquette’s will open the tournament Wednesday night against No. 10 Xavier (14-17, 6-14), against whom the Golden Eagles’ first win over a high major opponent came on Jan. 7 at home. Xavier won the second game between the two teams in Cincinnati after making 11 3-pointers in the first half of an eventual 96-88 win.
Now, the programs match up for the third time this season, with the winner being awarded a date against No. 2 UConn on Thursday.
Here’s a preview of the first round tilt:
Can Marquette’s defense stop Xavier’s offense?
The Golden Eagles have been winning games with their defense as of late. And after holding the Huskies to a season-low 35.6% from the field on Saturday, MU’s confidence is as high as it’s been this season.
But the Musketeers boast the fourth-highest scoring offense in the league and the blue & gold has had issues stopping it this season.
Leading the way is graduate forward Tre Carroll, who averaged 18 points and 5.7 rebounds per game en route to being named to the league’s first team. He was Xavier’s lone player to earn an All-Big East selection.
The FAU transfer averaged 15 points and 6.5 rebounds per game on 42.9% from the floor this season in two games against MU, but he missed the Musketeers’ regular season finale after suffering a hip injury on the team’s senior day and his status for Wednesday is unknown.
Even if Carroll is unavailable, Xavier has four other players — Jovan Milicevic (12.3 points per game), Malik Messina-Moore (10.9), Roddie Anderson III (10.8) and Filip Borovicanin (10.5) — that average double figures.
How will MU’s backcourt fare in their first postseason action?
The improvement of first-year guards Nigel James Jr. and Adrien Stevens has mirrored the Golden Eagles’ rise this season.
James Jr. was named to the All-Big East third team on Sunday after finishing second in league play for total scoring behind Providence guard Jaylin Sellers.
And although he did not make an all-conference team, Stevens has posted double digit scoring in five of Marquette’s last eight games. He’s also played tenacious defense, averaging 2.4 steals over that time.
“They have more belief in themselves, they have more belief in each other. They’ve gotten some reps. Obviously, got some reps that haven’t gone our way. We got some reps that have gone our way,” Smart said.
“The belief has grown with each game.”
While they’ve played some of their best basketball as of late, the first-year duo has to deal with the pressure of performing on the Big East’s biggest stage for the first time in their young careers.
How to follow
Tip-off at Madison Square Garden is scheduled for 5:30 pm CST Wednesday evening.
Watch: The game will be broadcast on Peacock/NBCSN with John Fanta (play-by-play), Donny Marshall (analyst) and Caroline Pineda (reporter) on the call.
Listen: 94.5 ESPN radio and tune into Marquette Wire Radio where Matt Baltz (play-by-play) and Adrian Fraga (analyst) will have the call.
Follow: Follow @JackAlbrightMU, @MatthewBaltzMU and @MUWireSports on Twitter/X for live updates.
This story was written by Matthew Baltz. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter/X @MatthewBaltzMU.
