No. 16 Marquette (20-6, 11-4 Big East) enters Friday’s contest at Villanova (15-12, 8-8 Big East) with an eight-game winning streak on the line against the Wildcats, including a convincing 87-74 triumph on Jan. 24 in Milwaukee.
With the Big East Tournament looming, the contest will be critical in seeing how both teams have responded since their prior matchup in Milwaukee.
Which Marquette team will come to play
With about a month in between the first game and the rematch, Marquette has weathered some turbulence since its hot start to the 2024-25 season, including three consecutive losses.
The first was the program’s first National Marquette Day defeat since the 2017-18 season, when the Golden Eagles still played in the Bradley Center. Hosting the two-time defending national champion UConn Huskies was no walk in the park, with the Huskies maintaining the game’s pacing, and imposing their will on the Fiserv floor in a resounding road effort, as UConn ensured a five-to-seven possession lead for the majority of the contest in a 77-69 loss that was not as close as the final indicated.
An ugly loss at Madison Square Garden to St. John’s, and despite a 27-point effort from senior Kam Jones, and 22 from senior David Joplin, Marquette still lost by double digits to Creighton, a team they had beaten earlier in the season at Fiserv Forum on Jan. 3.
But the Golden Eagles have started to wane off that ice-cold slump, with a win over DePaul at home, and blowing out Seton Hall on Tuesday– who upset UConn in their previous game before coming to Milwaukee, as Marquette shot just north of 40% from 3-point range.
Villanova looking for another sparkplug home win behind Eric Dixon and sharp shooting
Senior forward Eric Dixon, who averages 22.9 points per game, and 41.8 percent shooting from deep, is one of the leading candidates for Big East Player of the Year and was kept in check during the first meeting in Milwaukee. He totaled 18 points, but most of his scoring was when the game felt like it was already decided.
A breakout name to watch Friday is senior Jordan Longino, who amassed a career-high 27 points at Fiserv Forum during the last go-around. Longino stepped up big for the Wildcats, with Marquette’s defensive focus primarily on Dixon.
In Villanova’s 73-71 upset of then-No. 9 St. John’s on Feb. 12, sophomore Tyler Perkins made the game-winning 3-pointer with nine seconds left gave the Wildcats the boost they needed to secure the victory. Shooting was a strength in defeating the Red Storm, with the Wildcats shooting 53.1 percent from the field, and a blistering 45.8 percent from downtown, which was in an extra gear compared to their season averages of 46.7 percent, and 39.6 percent, respectively.
After beating the Red Storm, the Wildcats dropped two games in a row, suffering a 13-point loss at the Amica Mutual Pavilion to Providence, and falling 66-59 in Storrs to UConn, after winning the first matchup against the Huskies.
Currently .500 in Big East play, a win over a ranked opponent like Marquette would boost Villanova’s postseason ambitions, already having defeated UConn, and St. John’s this season at the Finneran Pavilion- both of whom were ranked No. 9 coming into those contests.
How to follow the game
Tip-off is slated for Friday Feb. 21, 6 p.m. CST at the Wells Fargo Center.
Watch: FS1 will nationally broadcast the evening’s action, with Alex Faust (play-by-play) and Donny Marshall (analyst) calling the game.
Listen: 94.5 ESPN Milwaukee.
Live updates: @KaylynnWrightMU and @MUWireSports.
This article was written by Mikey Severson. He can be reached at michael.severson@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X @MikeySeversonMU.