For a team that had been to the NCAA Tournament just once in the past three years, the Marquette Golden Eagles had a heck of a season. Picked to finish ninth in the Big East, Marquette won the regular season title outright for the first time in school history. The Golden Eagles didn’t stop there, as they also captured the Big East Tournament title to cap off an incredible run.
Marquette was a two-seed heading into the NCAA Tournament and the sky seemed to be the limit. However, after dismantling Vermont in the first round, Marquette looked out of sorts in an ugly loss to Tom Izzo and Michigan State. While the loss does leave a bad taste in the mouth of fans, the sky is the limit next year for a team that had just one senior this season.
With the Marquette basketball season now behind us, let’s take a look at the Golden Eagles player by player and grade them on their performance this year. Grades will take into account everybody’s individual role, so a starter will be held to a higher standard than bench players. For the sake of brevity, we will not be grading players that averaged less than nine minutes per game.
Marquette Basketball 2022-23 Roster Grades
Tyler Kolek
What was there not to love about Tyler Kolek this year? There was a reason he was Big East Player of the Year. Kolek was incredible, averaging just under 13 points along with seven assists and four rebounds. He shot efficiently and carried Marquette to a few wins on his own. While he looked awful against Michigan State and was a big reason why the Golden Eagles struggled, it would be unfair to put a ton of stock into just one game.
Marquette Basketball Grade: A
Kam Jones
Although Kolek ran the offense, Kam Jones was just as important. He scored 20+ points in eight games this year and his three-point shooting was crucial in wins over Providence, DePaul and St. John’s.
While his shooting could sometimes be up and down, his impact was steady. In their first-round game against Vermont, Jones got white hot, scoring 18 of his 19 points in the second half. Jones will only be a junior next year and the sky will be the limit for him moving forward.
Marquette Basketball Grade: A
Stevie Mitchell
While Stevie Mitchell rarely stuffs the stat sheet, he is always good at doing the little things. His main role this year was to harass the opposing guards, and he did that as well as anybody in the country. Mitchell showed the ability to score efficiently this year, but outside of a three-game stretch, he was inconsistent at best. Although some of that is due to a lack of shots, Mitchell needs to expand his game offensively to help take this team to the next level.
Marquette Basketball Grade: B
Olivier-Maxence Prosper
Olivier-Maxence Prosper, or more commonly referred to as “O-Max,” took a step up in his junior season. He can score at will when he’s feeling it from deep, but unfortunately, that didn’t come too often. Prosper scored double-digits in eight of 10 games during the middle of the year, but he struggled from deep late, shooting just 14/44 (31.8%) over the last 12 games of the season. Prosper also had a few games where he looked young, making multiple poor decisions late in games. If he can work on those two things, he’ll be a problem in his final season.
Marquette Basketball Grade: B+
Oso Ighodaro
It’s hard to ask for much from an undersized sophomore center in a conference like the Big East. Shaka Smart asked a lot of Oso Ighodaro, and he answered the call. Ighodaro was good for double-digits seemingly every night and provided a much-needed interior presence. With that being said, Ighodaro struggled from the free throw line, shooting just 54% on the season, and he averaged under six rebounds per game. If Marquette wants to take that next step, they need him to be better on the glass and from the stripe.
Marquette Basketball Grade: B+
David Joplin
One of the biggest reasons Marquette improved this year was thanks to the play of David Joplin. While he isn’t a starter, he improved his three-point shooting from 29% to 40% and his free throw shooting from 50% to 81%. Joplin proved he could be as dangerous of a scorer as any, erupting for 21, 19 and 28 against Purdue, Baylor and DePaul, respectively. If he can be a more consistent threat offensively next year, Joplin could easily be one of the best bench players in the country.
Marquette Basketball Grade: A
Chase Ross
With how deep Marquette is in the backcourt, Chase Ross was rarely asked to do much on either side of the floor. For the most part, he was simply a placeholder while a few key players got rest. He did his job well for most of the season, but Ross fell off when Marquette needed him most.
During Marquette’s final five games, Ross scored more than three points just once when he scored nine in an overtime victory against St. John’s. He was just 2/11 from the field and 1/8 from deep over the last four games. His four turnovers in their loss to Michigan State loomed large. Ross will look to rebound in his sophomore campaign.
Marquette Basketball Grade: C
Sean Jones
It was a tale of two seasons for Sean Jones, as he looked completely different after the turn of the calendar year. While some of that can be attributed to more playing time in non-conference play, he seemed to become more timid as Big East play hit its stride. The once confident shooter, Jones refused to shoot down the stretch. Jones took two shots or less in each of Marquette’s final 10 games. While he certainly isn’t a shooter Marquette wants pulling from anywhere on the court, his confidence shooting the ball would’ve opened up another dimension for their offense.
Marquette Basketball Grade: B-
Shaka Smart
Although many questions could be asked about his coaching against Michigan State (mostly standing pat while Kolek was forcing everything and literally giving Michigan State the ball), it’s hard to give Shaka Smart anything less than the highest of marks. Smart took an extremely young team to the top of the Big East. Not only did they win the regular season title, but they won it by two games.
In addition, Marquette finished 7-2 against AP Top-25 teams, beat every Big East opponent at least once and they captured their first-ever Big East Tournament title. He has completely turned around this program and will have a great chance to make a Final Four run next year, if everyone returns.
Marquette Basketball Grade: A+
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