No. 9/9 #MUBB Hosts No. 25/24 UConn On National Marquette Day

The No. 9/9 Marquette University men's basketball team (18-3, 9-1 BIG EAST) returns to Fiserv Forum on National Marquette Day to host No. 25/24 UConn (15-6, 7-3 BIG EAST) on Saturday, Feb. 1 at 7 p.m. CT. FOX features the national television broadcast, with Gus Johnson (play-by-play), Jim Jackson (analyst) and Kristina Pink (reporter) calling the action. Following Saturday, the Golden Eagles hit the road for a pair of games at St. John's (Feb. 4) and Creighton (Feb. 8).

Series Has Plenty Of Highlights

Marquette has faced UConn on just 19 occasions all-time (Huskies lead 11-8), but the limited series has already provided a number of memories.

The all-time series dates back to the program's first year in the BIG EAST in 2005-06. MU hosted the Huskies at the Bradley Center on Jan. 3, 2006 in the team's first home game as a member of the BIG EAST Conference. Steve Novak finished with 41 points and 16 rebounds and Jerel McNeal chipped in 19 points and 12 boards in a 94-79 Marquette victory over No. 2 UConn to hand the Huskies their first loss of the season.

Other series highlights include a game-winning shot by Jimmy Butler with three seconds left in a 70-68 road win in 2009-10 and a home overtime win on Jan. 1, 2013 when guard Junior Cadougan forced the extra session on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

UConn claimed each of the three meetings in 2023-24, most recently a 73-57 decision in the championship game of the 2024 BIG EAST tourney.

National Marquette Day Celebrated Saturday

National Marquette Day is a tradition dating back to the 1960s that brings the Marquette nation united together in pride and spirit to honor the values of the University.

On Saturday evening, alumni will gather in Milwaukee and around the world at more than 50 locations representing multiple states from the islands of Hawaii to New York to celebrate Marquette and cheer on the men's basketball team.

In its present form, National Marquette Day has been around since 1992. The celebration was preceded by Spirit Day, which dates back to the 1960s.

Marquette Shares Top Of BIG EAST Standings

Marquette improved to 9-1 in league play with Tuesday night's win over Butler and continues to own a share of first place with St. John's entering play Saturday afternoon.

Marquette has claimed as many as six-straight victories in BIG EAST play in each of the last four seasons (including 2024-25) and is 40-10 (.800) in league play since the start of 2022-23, which is the best mark in the conference during that time span. Through games of Jan. 29, UConn is second (38-12) and Creighton third (36-14) in BIG EAST play.

Marquette's start to league play is its best since 2008-09, when the Golden Eagles also opened BIG EAST action 9-1. MU has claimed its first five conference road games for the first time in program history (1989-90 was first season in a league).

Continuity Is Key To Recent Success

Since the 2022-23 campaign, Marquette is the only power conference team that hasn't signed a NCAA Division I transfer, leading to as consistent a starting lineup as any program in the country.

Through games of Jan. 29, Marquette is one of just seven squads (355 total) to feature the same starting lineup (Jones, Mitchell, Joplin, Ross, Gold). Two years ago, Marquette and Marshall were the only two teams in the country to utilize the same starting five the entire season.

Since the opening contest of the 2022-23 campaign (Kolek, Ighodaro, Prosper, Mitchell, Jones), just eight different players have started a game for MU, the lowest total in all of NCAA Division I. Of the eight, the three players (Kolek, Ighodaro, Prosper) currently not starting for the team are competing in the NBA.

Joplin, who hasn't missed an outing in his 126-game career, has a chance to pass Lazar Hayward (138) for most career appearances.

Mitchell Nets Career High In Win At Butler

BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year candidate Stevie Mitchell has put his offensive ability on display in the last two outings, scoring 20-or-more points in back-to-back outings for the first time in his 122-game career.

The Reading, Pennsylvania, native finished with 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting at Butler and also chipped in five rebounds, three assists, one steal and a blocked shot in 33 minutes of action. His previous career best of 21 points came in the team's previous matchup against Villanova.

In the last two games, Mitchell has averaged 21.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.0 steals per outing while shooting 66.7 percent (16-of-24) from the floor.