Marquette is trying to bounce back from a season in which it lost 20 games, one shy of the school record. That represented a major fall for a program that had reached the NCAA Tournament in each of coach Shaka Smart’s first four seasons.
Smart responded by going to the transfer portal to help restock his roster. Former Louisville forward/center Sananda Fru and former St. Thomas (Minnesota) guard Nolan Minessale are the first Division I transfers Marquette has added since 2021.
Players to watch
Nigel James Jr. was the Big East newcomer of the year last season, as he averaged 16.4 points and 4.9 assists in his freshman season to lead the Golden Eagles in both categories. The 6-foot guard was a first-team selection on the preseason all-Big East team chosen by the league coaches.
Royce Parham was a preseason second-team all-Big East pick. The 6-9 forward had 12.5 points per game last season. Adrien Stevens made 23 starts as a freshman last season and had 7.9 points per game.
Departures and arrivals
Fru, a preseason third-team all-Big East pick, comes to Marquette after blocking 50 shots and averaging 9 points and 6.1 rebounds at Louisville last season. Minessale, who is from the Milwaukee suburb of Brookfield, had 19.8 points per game at St. Thomas and was a finalist for the Lou Henson Award for the nation’s top mid-major player. He also had 4.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game.
Alex Egbuonu, a 6-7 freshman, scored a team-high 14 points in Marquette's 86-79 exhibition victory over No. 6 Michigan State.
Marquette’s most notable departures are guard Chase Ross and forward Ben Gold, who both exhausted their eligibility. Ross had 14.3 points per game last season. Gold averaged 8 points and a team-high 5.8 rebounds.
Top games
Marquette heads to No. 16 Michigan to face the defending national champions on Nov. 11. Marquette play No. 9 Virginia on Nov. 25 and Texas A&M on Nov. 27 in the Battle 4 Atlantis at Paradise Island, Bahamas. The Golden Eagles also have nonconference games against Missouri at Chicago on Nov. 15 and at home against Wisconsin on Dec. 5. Marquette visits No. 4 UConn on Jan. 12 and hosts the Huskies on Feb. 20. The Golden Eagles host St. John’s on Feb. 2 before playing a rematch Feb. 17 at Madison Square Garden.
Facts and figures
James and Arkansas’ Darius Acuff were the only Division I freshmen to have at least 19 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds per game in conference play last season. Acuff is now in the NBA after Sacramento took him with the seventh overall pick in the draft. A preseason poll of the Big East’s coaches predicted Marquette to finish fourth, behind UConn, St. John’s and Villanova.
Smart is 110-61 in five seasons at Marquette. He owns an overall record of 382-203 in 17 seasons.
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