The No. 5 Marquette Golden Eagles will be without top guard Tyler Kolek and forward Oso Ighodaro for their matchup vs. the No. 12 Creighton Bluejays on Saturday. Kolek is dealing with an oblique injury while Ighodaro has an illness that will hold him out.
The Bluejays enter the contest as 8-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook at home vs. Marquette, which enters this matchup 2.0 games behind the UConn Huskies for first place in the Big East. A Huskies win over Seton Hall on Sunday and a Marquette loss vs. Creighton would give UConn the top seed in the Big East Tournament.
With two top players out for Marquette, it’s hard to envision this going well for the Golden Eagles. The good news is the committee likely won’t knock Marquette for a loss to a top-15 team on the road without two starters in the lineup. So as long as Kolek and Ighodaro return in time for the Big East Tournament, this shouldn’t impact Marquette’s seeding come the NCAA Tournament.
Marquette will have to make up for 29 points per game between the two players out. Kam Jones will need to step up even more with Kolek sidelined. Stevie Mitchell and Chase Ross also figure to get a boost in minutes in the back court. Ben Gold could find some additional playing time at forward with Ighodaro out.
