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Marquette Basketball: Golden Eagles to host a pair of 2018 Cinderellas next year

By Brian Foley

CHARLOTTE, NC - MARCH 18: Nolan Gerrity
CHARLOTTE, NC - MARCH 18: Nolan Gerrity /
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Marquette Basketball will reportedly host UMBC and Buffalo next season, just the latest boosts to an already strong non-conference schedule.

Marquette may have missed the 2018 NCAA Tournament, but head coach Steve Wojciechowski seems to be looking to steal some tourney magic from his 2018-19 non-conference competitors.

According to Andy Katz’s latest story on NCAA.com, Marquette will host the UMBC Retrievers on Nov. 6 to open the new arena in Milwaukee. The Golden Eagles will also play Buffalo at home in December, as reported by Drew Olson of the Big 920.

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UMBC, of course, became the first 16 seed to ever defeat a 1 seed when they bludgeoned Virginia by 20 points in the first round. Buffalo also helped disrupt the South Region by thrashing the 4-seeded Arizona Wildcats 89-68 as a 13 seed. Both teams ultimately fell in the second round, but certainly made an imprint on the tournament by knocking off two title contenders.

UMBC will not be the same team when they come to Milwaukee, as leading scorer and tournament hero Jairus Lyles will have graduated. Diminutive point guard KJ Maura (11.3 ppg, 5 apg) and guard Jourdan Grant (7.5 ppg) have also run out of eligibility. Joe Sherburne will be UMBC’s returning leading scorer (10.7 ppg); Sherburne graduated from Whitefish Bay High School right outside of Milwaukee, so this will be something of a homecoming for him.

Still, even without Lyles and Maura, UMBC should be a feisty opponent. Head coach Ryan Odom has built a solid program over his two seasons at UMBC (46-24 overall record). UMBC is 1-5 against major conference programs since Odom took over, and the games haven’t been particularly close (including the UVA beatdown), but it will still be interesting to watch Marquette take on the ultimate Cinderella team to open the season.

Buffalo should be a legitimate test though. The Bulls have made the NCAA tournament in two of the last three seasons under head coach Nate Oats, and return their top three scorers from a year ago. Rising seniors CJ Massinburg, Nick Perkins, and Jeremy Harris all averaged between 15.5 and 17 points per game last year. Buffalo will be without talented scorer and leading assists man Wes Clark, who is graduating this spring, but the Bulls should have enough more than enough scoring punch remaining to test Marquette’s iffy defense.

Wojo built a very nice non-conference schedule last season, and looks to be doing it once again for the 2018-19 campaign. On top of the reported contests with UMBC and Buffalo, Marquette is also one of four teams in the NIT Tip-Off tournament over Thanksgiving week. The Golden Eagles will play two games against Kansas, Louisville, and Tennessee, all of whom will field talented squads. Additionally, the NIT Tip-Off comes with two campus games against mid- and low-major programs.

Marquette also has the annual rivalry game with Wisconsin on the schedule in early December, which the Golden Eagles will host this year. The Badgers should compete for a tourney bid this winter after an uncharacteristically poor season in 2017-18. And there is a good chance Marquette will play in another Gavitt Games contest against a Big Ten foe in November, though it will likely be a road game.

Next: Breaking down Big East recruiting for 2018

There are still a few slots left to fill for the 2018 non-conference, but Marquette already has eight solid match-ups in tow. The Big East is no cakewalk, but with so many of the conference’s top players graduating or leaving school early, MU can’t necessarily rely on boosting its strength of schedule in the Big East. Wojo clearly understands this and has set up several early tests for his rising squad.

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