Are you ready for some of the best college basketball action? Then you can’t miss out on catching the next home game for The Marquette Golden Eagles. This men’s basketball team represents Marquette University in NCAA Division I college basketball. They compete in the Big East Conference and play their home games from the Fiserv Forum in Downtown Milwaukee.
Ever since the program was founded, it has earned 33 NCAA Tournament appearances, including 23 round of 32 appearances, 16 sweet sixteens, 7 elite eights, and 3 final fours. The team has won the national runner-up 1 time and won 1 national championship.
When Marquette first joined a conference in 1989, they won 3 conference regular season championships and 1 conference tournament championships. Marquette has also had 3 national coaches of the year and 4 conference coaches of the year. In addition, the program has fielded one national player of the year, 9 consensus all-americans, and 16 all-conference first team selections to date.
But most importantly, the team trains strong players including 39 players who have gone on to play in the NBA combining for 7 NBA championships, 25 NBA all-star selections, and 11 all-NBA selections.
About Fiserv Forum Arena
Fiserv Forum, is a multi-purpose arena located in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It currently serves as the home for the Milwaukee Bucks of the NBA as well as the Marquette Golden Eagles men’s basketball team of the NCAA.
It’s a relatively recent stadium, since it was opened to the public on August 26, 2018. IT was designed with basketball in mind, but has been used as a concert venue as well as for a variety of other events. Though its capacity is listed as 17,341, it surpassed this limit on February 28, 2020 when it had a record setting attendance of 18,412 spectators.
History
The Fiserv Forum was designed to replace the BMO Harris Bradley Center, which was built back in 1988. Despite being one of the premier NBA facilities at its time, the old center was one of the oldest active NBA arenas and it was determined that the city’s professional NBA team deserved a more modern home arena.
FormerBucks owner and former U.S. Senator Herb Kohl proposed building a new downtown arena to replace the Bradley Center. This led to a lot of discussion about the idea of a publicly funded arena, but no resolution was reached.
The NBA later advised the Bucks that their leaseat the Bradley Center would not be renewed after the 2017-18 season, and the team needed to have a new arena complete or under construction or the franchise would be bought and sold to Las Vegas or Seattle. Since this would mean the departure of the Bucks from the city, the state Senate approved funding for the new arena by a 21-10 margin.
The official groundbreaking ceremony was then set during the 2nd annual Bucks Block Party on June 18, 2016. And just over 2 years later, on August 26, 2018, Fiserv Forum was completed and opened to the public. The first live event at the new arena was The Killers with Violent Femmes on September 4, 2018. And the first Bucks game at the Fiserv Forum was during preseason against the Chicago Bulls on October 3, 2018 (and a 116-82 point Bucks victory).
The Bucks have had incredible success at Fiserv Forum since it opened, compiling a staggering record of 87-21 (.805) and a postseason record of 16-3 at the Forum.
Nicknames
Since its debut, the Forum has gained notoriety among fans and visitors which has earned it nicknames from the locals. One of the nicknames is “The Four-One-Forum” which refers to Milwaukee’s 414 area code. It also refers to Giannis Antetokounmpo whose superstardom with the Bucks brought a lot of fan support to the Bucks franchise. In fact, some people call the Forum “The House that Giannis Built”.
Achievements
Ever since the Marquette Golden Eagles first hit the court, they’ve made a mark on Collegiate basketball. From tournament appearances and wins to award winning players, this athletic program has always been one to watch for anyone who loves college sports.
But here are just some of the biggest achievements that the team has claimed.
NCAA Tournaments
To date, Marquette has appeared in the NCAA Tournament 33 times. Their standing combined record is a strong 41-34, with a National Championship in the books.
NIT
Marquette has been invited to compete in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 16 times. To date, they have a combined record of 23-15 in NIT play.
In 1970, Marquette was ranked 8th and received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the year. Marquette was slotted into the Midwest regional rather than the closer Mideast regional. But Al McGuire didn’t like the decision and refused the NCAA bid that year and chose to play in the NIT instead, which his ssGolden Eagles won.
That makes Marquette the only university to ever spurn an NCAA Tournament invite. This led to a later rule that forbade NCAA Division I men’s basketball teams from spurning an NCAA bid for an NIT bid. The NIT filed an antitrust case against the NCAA over this issue, which was settled out of court.
NCIT
Marquette has also appeared in the very last National Catholic Invitational Tournament in 1952, which they won.
Individual Player/Coach Honors and Awards
As mentioned before, the team has a history of success and sports honors, which is largely owed to the excellent players and coaches the program has fielded. Many of these persons have been honored with awards and these are just a few.
National Coach of the Year
- Eddie Hickey (1959)
- Al McGuire (1971, 1974)
Great Midwest Conference Coach of the Year
- Kevin O’Neill (1993, 1994)
Conference USA Coach of the Year
- Tom Crean (2002, 2003)
National Player of the Year
- Butch Lee (1978)
Consensus All-America First Team
- Dean Meminger (1971)
- Jim Chones (1972)
- Butch Lee (1978)
- Dwyane Wade (2003)
- Markus Howard (2020)