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Shaka Smart overachieved relative to preseason projections in his first season at Marquette, finishing exactly four spots better than expected in the Big East standings while making the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
Then, he lost three of his top four scorers.
Consequently, Marquette was picked ninth (for the second straight year) in October’s Big East preseason poll. If you’ve been paying attention, though, you likely know the Golden Eagles are exceeding expectations once again. They’re now 15-5 overall and 7-2 in the league following Wednesday’s 83-75 win over Providence. It was the perfect ending to an incredible night on which the school honored Tom Crean and his 2003 Marquette team that Dwyane Wade and Travis Diener took to the Final Four.
“It’s fun to play in those moments — especially in an environment like Fiserv [Forum] was tonight,” Marquette guard Kam Jones told reporters after scoring 18 second-half points and finishing with 21 to help Marquette improve to 11-1 at home.
Jones, by the way, has emerged as one of the season’s breakout stars. The 6-foot-4 sophomore from Memphis played for Team Thad on the grassroots circuit but was not seriously pursued by his hometown Tigers while in high school and ultimately picked Marquette over Florida. After averaging 7.4 points in 18.5 minutes per game as a freshman, Jones is now averaging a team-high 16.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.5 steals in 30.9 minutes as a sophomore. He is among the biggest reasons Marquette is tied with Xavier in the win column atop the Big East standings and in position to secure its first conference title since Buzz Williams guided the program to a Big East crown in 2013.
The Golden Eagles are No. 14 in Thursday morning’s updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings. Their next game is Saturday at Seton Hall.
