Men's Basketball Tops No. 7 Seed Marquette to Advance in BIG EAST Tournament

Wednesday, March 11

New York City, N.Y.

6:30 p.m.

Xavier University

15-17,6-14Big East

No. 7 seed Marquette

12-20,7-13Big East

Xavier

Marquette

Men's Basketball Tops No. 7 Seed Marquette to Advance in BIG EAST Tournament

03.11.26 | Men's Basketball

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Musketeers move on to face No. 2 seed UConn on Thursday evening

By: Xavier Athletic Communications

NEW YORK - The 10th seeded Musketeers held off No. 7 seed Marquette to take an 89-87 win in the first round of the 2026 BIG EAST Tournament on Wednesday evening at Madison Square Garden.

The Musketeers moved to 15-17 (6-14 BIG EAST) with the win, while the Golden Eagles dropped to 12-20 (7-13 BIG EAST).

Xavier advances to face No. 2 seed UConn in the BIG EAST Tournament Quarterfinals at Madison Square Garden, set for a 7:00 p.m. start on FS1.

NOTABLES

In a game that featured four ties and eight lead changes, Xavier built the lead out to as many as 10, 29-19, with just under 10 minutes remaining before halftime. Marquette used a 15-2 run to erase Xavier's lead and move in front before the game went into the half tied 38-38. Jovan Milicevic led Xavier in the first half with 13 points.
Marquette took a three-point lead early in the second half, but the Musketeers used another 15-2 run to extend the lead back to double figures, 60-50, with under 12 minutes remaining.
The Golden Eagles erased Xavier's advantage, tying the game at 80-80 in the final two minutes of the game. A basket from Tre Carroll and 5-of-6 shooting from the free throw line helped the Musketeers seal the win at 89-87.
Jovan Milicevic led four Musketeers in double figures with 21 points, reaching double figures for the 14th time in the last 16 outings.
Malik Messina-Moore scored 18 points, his 17th double-digit game in 21 contests against BIG EAST teams this season
Tre Carroll finished with 18 points and led the Musketeers with nine rebounds. He scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half on 6-of-9 shooting over the last 20 minutes.
Filip Borovicanin finished with 10 points, all scored in the second half, shooting 3-of-4 from the floor and 4-of-4 from the free throw line after the half. Borovicanin had a team-high seven assists and grabbed six rebounds.
Xavier shot 51.6 percent (33-64) from the floor overall after shooting 63.3 percent (19-30) in the second half. Marquette shot 42.5 percent (31-73).
Marquette finished with a 39-37 advantage on rebounds overall, with a 14-7 advantage on the offensive glass, outscoring Xavier 20-11 on second-chance points.
Xavier's 21 assists are one shy of its BIG EAST Tournament mark. Additionally, the Musketeers improve to 8-1 this season when logging at least 21 assists.
The Musketeers capture their first win in the BIG EAST Tournament since the 2024 First Round, when Xavier defeated Butler 76-72.