Purdue vs Marquette: 2023 Maui Invitational title game preview, TV schedule
It’s Purdue and Marquette facing off in the championship game of the Maui Invitational. Who will win the title and likely get the No. 1 overall ranking?
TV schedule: Wednesday, November 22nd, 5:00 pm ET (approx) ESPN
Arena: Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu, Hawaii
The 2023 Maui Invitational has lived up to its billing as one of the most loaded MTEs in recent cbb memory. It gave us a pair of top-10 matchups in the semifinals, which means we’ll get two more on Wednesday, including No. 2 Purdue vs No. 4 Marquette in the title game.
Marquette (5-0) already took out the No. 1 team in the country the night before in the Kansas Jayhawks. The Golden Eagles led throughout the game and took the margin to around 20 at one point, winning 73-59 overall. It was a big outing for forward Oso Ighodaro, who went for 21 points and nine rebounds, while also outplaying Hunter Dickinson on the opposing side. Chase Ross was second on the team with 12 points and six rebounds off the bench.
They’ll take on Purdue (5-0), who had a much tougher semifinals game against Tennessee. There were more fouls called than made field goals, with neither team shooting over 35% overall. In the end, the Boilermakers got just enough from National Player of the Year Zach Edey (23 points and 10 rebounds) and Fletcher Loyer (27 points), to win 71-67 in a sluggish and hard-fought game.
Both starting big men are coming off great games, so the matchup between Ighodaro and Edey. So far, Purdue has been able to get the opposing frontcourts in Maui (Gonzaga and Tennesse) in complete foul trouble. The Eagles don’t have a ton of depth so if something happens to Ighodaro, they could be in trouble.
In the backcourt, Purdue has had great individual games from both Loyer and Braden Smith but they may need them both to play well together to offset what Kameron Jones and Big East Player of the Year Tyler Kolek can do offensively. Role players such as Lance Jones for Purdue and Chase Ross for Marquette will also be a factor in this matchup.
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With respect to No. 3 Duke, it’s safe to say that the winner of this game will be the No. 1 team in the next AP poll. It would be a historic week for Marquette to beat the No. 1 and 2 teams two straight nights but with Edey in the way, I don’t think they’ll be able to do that.
Prediction: Purdue 75, Marquette 70