It finally happened. Marquette Golden Eagles are no longer among the Top 25 best basketball prograns.
The Associated Press updated its weekly Top 25 Coaches Poll and Marquette is among the biggest loser after they placed 27 on the list from 25th last week. This is despite them receiving 69 points in the latest data.
The drop stems from the team’s performance last week wherein they went 1-1 in the Big East tournament. They won against the Xavier Musketeers by a hairline and then lost to St. John’s Red Storm by 16 points.
The team spent 50 weeks in Top 25, the fourth longest in its history.
They were one of the four programs with active streak inside the Top 25. The other three are the no. 2 Houston Cougars(105), no. 6 Tennessee Titans (79), and no. 22 Purdue Boilermakers (58).
Currently occupying Top 1 are the Duke Blue Devils.
Marquette will have a chance to re-enter the elite 25 if they perform well in the NCAA tournament.
Marquette Golden Eagles vs New Mexico Lobos
The Golden Eagles earned the seventh seed for the NCAA tourney and will face 10th-seed New Mexico Lobos in the first round. The game will be held in Cleveland.
Although the last game has been disheartening, head coach Shaka Smart says it is a thing of the past now and that they are ready to make a run.
“Having been through the twists and turns of the NCAA tournament, I think both the wins we have had and also the losses we’ve had – six games in the last three seasons for our seniors – have taught us a lot of lessons,” Smart said. “Taught those guys a lot of lessons.
“When you get to the NCAA tournament, it does feel different. There’s a lot of different things around it. So I think being able to normalize that feeling and understand that we’ve been here before is a powerful thing.”
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