DAYTON – The University of Dayton men's basketball team's non-conference opponent breakdown continues with Marquette, which the Flyers travel to play in Milwaukee at Fiserv Forum on Nov. 19 as part of a return of a home-and-home series.
 
2024-25 Season
Marquette went 23-11 in 2024-25, making the NCAA Tournament as a No. 7 seed, ultimately falling to No. 10 New Mexico. Dayton topped Marquette 71-63 in the UD Arena in December last season, but the Golden Eagles boasted wins over NCAA Tournament teams Creighton, Georgia, Maryland, Purdue, Wisconsin, and Xavier during the season.
 
Key Returners
Marquette has a strong nucleus returning for the 2025-26 campaign, led by senior guard Chase Ross, who averaged 10.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per game a season ago. Other contributors returning are senior forward Ben Gold (7.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg), sophomore forward Royce Parham (5.1 ppg, 2.2 rpg), and junior guard Zaide Lowery (4.1 ppg, 3.0 rpg). Sophomore Damarius Owens, junior Tre Norman and sophomore Caedin Hamilton also return.
 
Key Additions
The Golden Eagles have announced a freshman signing class of guard Nigel James, forward Ian Miletic, forward Michael Phillips II, and guard Adrien Stevens.
 
Key Losses
Leading scorer Kam Jones was drafted No. 38 overall by the Indiana Pacers in the 2025 NBA Draft after averaging 19.2 points per game. Both David Joplin (14.2 ppg, 5.4 rpg) and Stevie Mitchell (10.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg) finished their collegiate careers.
 
Head Coach
Shaka Smart enters his fifth season as head coach at Marquette, having posted a 98-41 (.705) record in his first four years. The Golden Eagles have made the NCAA Tournament each season of Smart's tenure, including advancing to the Sweet 16 in 2024 as a No. 2 seed. Smart got his start as a collegiate coach as the Director of Operations from 2001-03 for Oliver Purnell at Dayton.
 
Series History
Dayton and Marquette have faced off 36 times in program history, with the Golden Eagles holding a narrow 21-15 edge all-time. The Flyers have won six of the last seven meetings, including a 71-63 victory last season at UD Arena. UD and MU have shared conference affiliations twice throughout the matchup's history, being part of both the Midwestern Collegiate Conference and the Great Midwest Conference.