It’s official!
Hear it from Brian Dee and Gabe Neitzel:
Indeed, Marquette will be part of the East part of the bracket, as they will play 15th-seeded Vermont on Friday in Columbus, Ohio.
Marquette head coach Shaka Smart tells Marquette College GameDay the preparation this week will still be a challenge.
“The hungrier team has a huge advantage,” Smart says. “It’s incumbent to us to…we’re gonna be the hungrier team.”
“We are Marquette” chants break out at Selection Sunday. pic.twitter.com/eUR4rH08Uf
— ESPN Milwaukee (@ESPNMilwaukee) March 12, 2023
The selection comes after Tyler Kolek and crew raced out to a hefty lead and didn’t look back, beating No. 15 Xavier 65-51 on Saturday to win its first Big East championship after 18 seasons in the conference.
“We’ve got more to play for than anyone if we look at it from the standpoint of playing for each other,” Smart added. “There’s a relationship between every member of our program that’s genuine, that’s authentic and if we play for one another that gives you an added element that other teams don’t have much of.”
No. 2 seed Marquette is heading to Columbus to take on No. 15 Vermont this Friday! pic.twitter.com/WdGBa5ncOR
— ESPN Milwaukee (@ESPNMilwaukee) March 12, 2023
The matchup between the Golden Eagles and the Catamounts in the first round of the NCAA Tournament will take place this Friday at 1:45pm, with pregame coverage beginning at 1:15 pm. You can hear Steve True and Tony Smith on the call on our sister station 94.5 ESPN (WKTI). Should Marquette win the game, they would play either Michigan State or USC on Sunday.
Greg Matzek gives his thoughts on the selection.