For the second time this year, the Marquette Golden Eagles are ranked in the AP Poll. They racked up 131 voting points to beat out Baylor, Clemson, and Indiana. This is the 2nd time in the current season they have been ranked, being previously ranked at 23 in Week 7. You can find the updated AP Poll rankings here.
Golden Eagles Had A Strong Week To Earn Their Spot
The Golden Eagles are coming off a week in which they averaged 95.5 points a game in their 2 games. They beat conference rivals St. Johns and Georgetown in dominating fashion to catapult themselves into 3rd in the Big East Conference. They are only trailing UConn and Providence in a conference that is likely to produce at least 5 participants for the 68-team tournament in March.
The 25th-place ranking also comes at the beginning of a season-defining week for the Golden Eagles. They have two games before the Associated Press updates their rankings for Week 11 and those 2 games come against opponents who are ranked 6th and 12th in the national standings.
The matchup on Wednesday night against UConn will be at home in Milwaukee, while they have to travel to Cincinnati on the 15th to battle the Musketeers of Xavier. These games will set a precedent for the rest of the season, not only in the national rankings but the standings of the Big East as well. With the conference tournament set to begin on March 8th Marquette would like to set the standard this week that they truly are a force to be reckoned with. A split in these games or a win in both would give the Golden Eagles a new level of confidence to ride as they play a few lesser conference opponents in the weeks to come.
Toughest Tests Are Yet To Come
They have not played either school yet this year and have an undefeated record, albeit a small sample size, against ranked opponents up to this point. They beat 6th ranked Baylor on November 29th during the Big 12-Big East Battle. They easily handled the Bears by shooting the lights out of the gym and scoring 96 against one of the better-ranked defenses at the time.
The time-tested quote “You can’t win a National Championship in January, but you can lose one.” will be on full display until the champion cuts the nets down in March, but coming into a week that could define a team’s short-term success as well as have lasting affects on their long term performance it is important to be competitive against higher quality opponents.
It is important to note that Marquette is on a 4 game-winning streak against teams that have a combined record of 33-34 on the season, so not necessarily the strongest strength of schedule. This is not to take away from the impressive win they had against the 11-6 St. Johns Red Storm.
In Conclusion
In lesser conferences such as the Sunbelt or even the SWAC, your conference schedule doesn’t sharpen the iron necessary to make a deep run (most of the time.) Albeit there are cinderella stories, and that’s what makes March Madness so great. However when you play in a conference where realistically 6 teams will be a part of the field of 68, you are more likely to have a stronger will to win, and a better track record when you inevitably have to take down blue bloods like Kansas, UConn, UCLA or Gonzaga on your way to the championship. The Big East has a few juggernauts in UConn and Xavier, and hopefully Marquette.
A big week has started off fantastic with the Golden Eagles being ranked, the road ahead has its trials but so far Marquette has proven that they are up for the challenge and will continue to be a threat in the Big East.
Do you think Marquette has what it takes to win the title? I do! Let’s see how they can dance their way to glory here.
