The sixth-ranked Marquette Golden Eagles will begin conference play on Tuesday night on the road against the Providence Friars. Tip-off will be at 7:30 p.m. CT. Marquette will be looking to defend their Big East Title crown as they won the regular season and postseason crowns a season ago.
The Golden Eagles know it is a long process ahead of them. Head coach Shaka Smart will need to keep his players focused on the prize and Marquette has a ton of talent on its roster heading into conference play. The Marquette Golden Eagles enter conference play with a 9-2 record and the Providence Friars enter conference play with a 9-2 record as well.
Marquette last played on Thursday against St. Thomas, Minnesota, and won by a final score of 84-79. Five players scored in double digits in that game for the Golden Eagles. Oso Ighodaro led the way for the Golden Eagles with 21 points and he also grabbed eight rebounds and recorded two assists.
David Joplin also scored 10 points, Tyler Kolek added 12 points, Kam Jones added 13 points, and Chase Ross also scored 11 points for Marquette. It is not always one guy leading the scoring for this basketball team on a game-to-game basis. This is why this basketball team is so good and so deep.
Players That the Marquette Golden Eagles Need to Watch For When Facing the Providence Friars
Providence last played on Saturday night against Sacred Heart and the Friars won the game by a final score of 78-64. The Friars are also a good college basketball team with hopes of going to the NCAA Tournament. They look to be an upset-minded team on Tuesday night against the Marquette Golden Eagles on their own home court.
Bryce Hopkins led the way for Providence on Saturday with 26 points, 12 rebounds, and two assists. Josh Oduro and Rich Barron each scored 14 points in the game. Davonte Gaines and Jayden Pierre also each scored 11 points in the basketball game for the Friars.
There is talent on both sides of the spectrum. The Marquette Golden Eagles will have a tough road test ahead of them against the Providence Friars, but Marquette should be able to squeak out a Big East Conference road win to start conference play for 2023-2024.
