No. 11/11 #MUBB Heads to No. 12/10 St. John's Tuesday Night

The No. 11/11 Marquette University men's basketball team (18-4, 9-2 BIG EAST) opens a two-game BIG EAST road swing at No. 12/10 St. John's (19-3, 10-1 BIG EAST) on Tuesday, Feb. 4 at 5:30 p.m. CT from Madison Square Garden. FS1 features the national television broadcast, with Jason Benetti (play-by-play) and Bill Raftery (analyst) calling the action. Following Tuesday's outing, the Golden Eagles will travel to Creighton for a 1 p.m. CT matchup on Feb. 8.

Al McGuire Ties Marquette And St. John's

The all-time series (Marquette leads 29-16) began in 1959-60 and prior to the clinching of the BIG EAST title on the last day of the regular season in 2012-13, the series' top highlight was a 65-53 Marquette victory in the championship game of the 1970 NIT.

MU claimed the NIT title under the direction of legendary head coach Al McGuire, who played for three seasons at St. John's (1948-51). In his first season with the Redmen, he finished third in scoring with an 8.1 points per game average.

McGuire's coaching career at Marquette included the 1977 national title, nine NCAA tournament appearances and a 295-80 overall record. The program and university celebrate "Al's Day" each season when St. John's plays in Milwaukee.

Marquette has claimed each of the last six meetings, including an 86-75 decision on Feb. 10, 2024 at Fiserv Forum in the most recent matchup. Guard Tyler Kolek led all scorers with 27 points and also dished out 13 assists.

Strange Box Score Tells The Story In Loss

Marquette forced 25 UConn turnovers on Saturday night, but the Huskies finished the game shooting 59.5 percent from the floor (MU just 39.7 percent) and 63.2 percent from behind the 3-point line in the 77-69 victory.

The Golden Eagles trailed by as many as 22 points before closing the gap to just two possessions in the closing minutes, but UConn was able to hold off MU down the stretch. Marquette finished with a 29-9 advantage in points off turnovers and concluded the game with 21-more shot attempts, but in the end the Huskies' efficiency and timely baskets were too much to overcome.

Tuesday's Matchup Features League's Best

Marquette and St. John's have combined for a 19-3 league record through games of Feb. 2 and entering play Tuesday night the Red Storm (10-1) is one game ahead of the Golden Eagles (9-2) and Creighton (9-2).

MU tops the BIG EAST and fourth in the nation in steals per game (10.2) and St. John's is second in the league and 18th in the country (9.5).

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 40-11 (.784) in league play since the start of 2022-23, which is the best mark in the conference during that time span. Through games of Feb. 2, UConn is second (39-12) and Creighton third (37-14) 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 9-2, despite trailing at halftime in six of the outings in 2024-25.

MU has claimed its first five conference road games for the first time in program history (1989-90 was first season in a league).