(MARQUETTE COMMUNICATIONS) NEW YORK – The Marquette University men’s basketball team (12-20) concluded its 2025-26 season in the first round of the 2026 BIG EAST Tournament presented by Jeep with an 89-87 loss to Xavier (15-17) on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.
Marquette coach Shaka Smart said that his team just came up short.
Smart addressed the improvements his team made over the course of the season.
Sophomore forward Royce Parham finished with 22 points and nine rebounds and freshman Michael Phillips II finished with a career-high 10 points.
It remained a one possession game throughout a majority of the first part of the second half, but a Xavier 3-pointer at the 13:13 mark gave the Musketeers a 54-48 advantage and resulted in a Marquette timeout. XU continued to extend its lead with a 15-2 run and the advantage increased to double digits at the under-12 media timeout. The Golden Eagles, responded however, pulling even at 80-80 with 1:56 left, but were unable to pull ahead and Xavier made its free throws down the stretch to secure the victory.
Xavier led by as many as 10 points in the first half, but MU used a 15-2 run late in the half to take a 34-31 lead with 4:39 on the clock. The score was tied 38-38 at the intermission thanks to nine points from Parham. The Golden Eagles shot just 39.5 percent from the floor, but held the Musketeers to just a 41.2 percent clip. Freshman Nigel James Jr. was limited to just 11 minutes after picking up two early fouls.
NOTABLES
- Guard Nigel James Jr. was named the BIG EAST Freshman of the Year at the BIG EAST Awards Ceremony on Wednesday afternoon
- Ben Gold played in his 138th career game and is tied for second all-time (Lazar Hayward, 2006-10) at MU and Chase Ross is now sixth with 134 appearances
- Phillips II scored his first two-point basket of the season after entering the game with 15 3-pointers in 25 appearances
- Ross concluded his Marquette career with 1,177 points (41st all-time)
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