- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 370,631
- Reaction score
- 43
Marquette men's basketball reached as high as No. 5 in the Associated Press rankings this year but lost three of its last five regular-season games, skidding to the point where it's going to take an upset to reach the second weekend of the tournament.
Here's what to know about the Golden Eagles before the brackets are unveiled Sunday:
The Golden Eagles are coming off back-to-back seasons in which they landed No. 2 seeds, and they're well off the pace of that this year despite returning a deep roster of talent, including All-American candidate Kam Jones and returning starters David Joplin and Stevie Mitchell. Perhaps, under-the-radar this time around, MU can sneak up on people, one season after reaching the second weekend for the first time since 2013.
Marquette's losses are mostly forgivable; the setback at home against Xavier is the only loss the Golden Eagles incurred below "Quad 1," and that was a 2-point game against a feisty team that MU has also beaten twice this season. Losses to Dayton, Creighton and Villanova aren't ideal, but they're also all on the road. There's plenty of argument here that this team has the acumen for a deep tournament run, but it will likely mean a major upset in the second round.
There's some variance here. As of March 15, Jerry Palm of CBS had Marquette listed as a No. 5 seed, Joe Lunardi of ESPN had Marquette as an 8 seed (granted, that was before a win over Xavier in the Big East tournament) and USA TODAY has MU as a No. 7 seed.
With the wide variance in seeding, guessing the opponent becomes difficult. The closer Marquette is to an 8-seed, the more likely they'll be facing a power-conference foe.
Interestingly enough, both Lunardi and USA Today assigned Baylor to the Golden Eagles. The Bears are fighting to solidify a spot in the tournament under Scott Drew, who's led the program to a top-three seed each of the past four years and a championship in 2021. Palm gives Marquette UC-San Diego, which gets nearly 20 points per game from New Zealand native Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones but would need to win the Big West tournament to get into the dance.
Other bubble teams that could turn into first-round foes: Oklahoma, Arkansas, Utah State, Vanderbilt and Georgia.
The only thing we know for sure is that Marquette won't play in Milwaukee, where MU serves as the host school and cannot get assigned. That leaves seven other locations, and it's incredibly difficult to predict where a seed outside the top four will get sent.
The closest venues to Milwaukee would be Lexington, Kentucky, or Cleveland. If MU is indeed a 7 or 8 seed, the chances increase of going to Kentucky, which is going to serve as a natural geographic home for some of the top teams in the field (like Auburn, Alabama and Tennessee). If No. 1 and No. 2 seeds are pulled to Lexington, it will also pull in the 7-10 or 8-9 matchups to that venue.
But MU could just as easily be sent to Seattle, Denver, Providence, Wichita or Raleigh. The latter site also looks like a popular spot for 1 and 2 seeds like Duke and Florida.
The men's bracket will be slowly unveiled starting at 5 p.m. Sunday on CBS and the women's bracket will get unveiled at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Marquette March Madness bracket predictions for 2025 NCAA tournament
Continue reading...
Here's what to know about the Golden Eagles before the brackets are unveiled Sunday:
The basics on Marquette men's basketball
- Coach:Shaka Smart (fourth season)
- Record: 23-10 (13-7 in Big East)
- Record in last 10: 5-5
- Best wins in 2024-25: vs. No. 6 Purdue on Nov. 19, 76-58; vs. No. 11 Wisconsin on Dec. 7, 88-74; at then-unranked Maryland on Nov. 14, 78-74.
- Puzzling loss in 2024-25: at Dayton on Dec. 14, 71-63; vs. Xavier on Jan. 18, 59-57.
- Place in ratings systems: KenPom, No. 28; T-Rank, No. 31; Associated Press poll, No. 25
- Leading scorers:Kam Jones (19.3 ppg); David Joplin (13.8 ppg); Stevie Mitchell (10.9 ppg); Chase Ross (10.7 ppg)
- Last time in NCAA Tournament: 2024 (No. 2 seed), won first round game vs. Western Kentucky, won second-round game vs. Colorado, lost Sweet 16 game vs. North Carolina State.
- Last time making second weekend: 2024 (Lost to N.C. State in Sweet 16)
- Final Four appearances: 2003 (lost to Kansas in semifinal); 1977 (national champion); 1974 (national runner-up)
You must be registered for see images attach
Can Marquette re-discover its early season promise?
The Golden Eagles are coming off back-to-back seasons in which they landed No. 2 seeds, and they're well off the pace of that this year despite returning a deep roster of talent, including All-American candidate Kam Jones and returning starters David Joplin and Stevie Mitchell. Perhaps, under-the-radar this time around, MU can sneak up on people, one season after reaching the second weekend for the first time since 2013.
Marquette's losses are mostly forgivable; the setback at home against Xavier is the only loss the Golden Eagles incurred below "Quad 1," and that was a 2-point game against a feisty team that MU has also beaten twice this season. Losses to Dayton, Creighton and Villanova aren't ideal, but they're also all on the road. There's plenty of argument here that this team has the acumen for a deep tournament run, but it will likely mean a major upset in the second round.
Where do NCAA bracket predictions place Marquette?
There's some variance here. As of March 15, Jerry Palm of CBS had Marquette listed as a No. 5 seed, Joe Lunardi of ESPN had Marquette as an 8 seed (granted, that was before a win over Xavier in the Big East tournament) and USA TODAY has MU as a No. 7 seed.
Who are potential opponents in the first round?
With the wide variance in seeding, guessing the opponent becomes difficult. The closer Marquette is to an 8-seed, the more likely they'll be facing a power-conference foe.
Interestingly enough, both Lunardi and USA Today assigned Baylor to the Golden Eagles. The Bears are fighting to solidify a spot in the tournament under Scott Drew, who's led the program to a top-three seed each of the past four years and a championship in 2021. Palm gives Marquette UC-San Diego, which gets nearly 20 points per game from New Zealand native Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones but would need to win the Big West tournament to get into the dance.
Other bubble teams that could turn into first-round foes: Oklahoma, Arkansas, Utah State, Vanderbilt and Georgia.
Where will Marquette play its first-round NCAA tournament game?
The only thing we know for sure is that Marquette won't play in Milwaukee, where MU serves as the host school and cannot get assigned. That leaves seven other locations, and it's incredibly difficult to predict where a seed outside the top four will get sent.
The closest venues to Milwaukee would be Lexington, Kentucky, or Cleveland. If MU is indeed a 7 or 8 seed, the chances increase of going to Kentucky, which is going to serve as a natural geographic home for some of the top teams in the field (like Auburn, Alabama and Tennessee). If No. 1 and No. 2 seeds are pulled to Lexington, it will also pull in the 7-10 or 8-9 matchups to that venue.
But MU could just as easily be sent to Seattle, Denver, Providence, Wichita or Raleigh. The latter site also looks like a popular spot for 1 and 2 seeds like Duke and Florida.
When will we know Marquette's first-round destination for sure?
The men's bracket will be slowly unveiled starting at 5 p.m. Sunday on CBS and the women's bracket will get unveiled at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Marquette March Madness bracket predictions for 2025 NCAA tournament
Continue reading...
