Photo by Tyler R. Klein
UWM Panthers slam dunk
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The 2023-24 season was an exciting year to be a fan of Division I men’s college basketball in Milwaukee.
Marquette, led by point guard sensation Tyler Kolek, reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since before falling to North Carolina State.
Across town, UWM fans watched star wing BJ Freeman put up a historic season, leading the Panthers within a few buckets of a Horizon League title.
Both squads must endure the departures of their dominant frontmen. But with solid foundations and promising incoming talent, Milwaukee and Marquette are poised for strong seasons on the court again.
UW-Milwaukee Panthers
Stack good days.
That is the motto UWM Men’s Basketball coach Bart Lundy preaches to keep his unit focused on its current challenges.
The team had very few good days early in 2023-24, but the veteran squad clicked down the stretch—winning six straight before falling to Oakland in the conference championship game.
The 2024-25 season goal is clear: reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2014. The program returns six of its top 10 minute-getters from a season ago but faces the loss of superstar BJ Freeman, who transferred to Arizona State.
Freeman was one of four DI players to average better than 20 points, six rebounds, and four assists per game last season.
Coach Lundy added four experienced players from the transfer portal to offset Freeman's departure. First were a pair of Milwaukee area prospects: Brown Deer’s John Lovelace Jr. and Whitnall’s Danilo Jovanich.
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Lovelace is a versatile 6-7 wing who spent two seasons at Youngstown State. Jovanovich played limited minutes at Miami (FL) and Louisville but was Wisconsin’s #3 prospect in the 2022 class.
Lundy also signed the backcourt duo of A.J. McKee (Queens) and Themus Fulks (Louisiana). McKee, an ASUN Second-Team All-Conference player, averaged 18.8 points per game, while Fulks and his 4.4 assists per game (third in the Sun Belt) finally give Milwaukee a true point guard.
These transfers will look to mesh with returners Erik Pratt (13.1 PPG), Faizon Fields (the conference leader in offensive rebounding rate), and Kentrell Pullian (six 20-plus point performances) as Milwaukee eyes a March breakthrough.
Marquette Golden Eagles
In a new era defined by the transfer portal, Marquette’s roster construction under head coach Shaka Smart has remained traditional.
The Golden Eagles were one of five DI programs without an offseason transfer departure and they did not add a scholarship player in the portal.
After reaching the Sweet 16 a year ago, Coach Smart must replace two second-round NBA Draft picks: guard Tyler Kolek and forward Oso Ighodaro.
Kolek was Marquette’s motor, earning consensus All-American status and leading the nation with 7.7 assists per game. The lanky 6-11 Ighodaro — All-BIG EAST Second Team — led MU in rebounds and blocks.
Fortunately for Smart, Kolek and Ighodaro were the only losses. The Sweet 16 group returns starters Kam Jones (a team-leading 17.2 PPG), defensive stopper Stevie Mitchell, and Brookfield Central product David Joplin, plus several key bench pieces.
Joplin transitioned from sixth-man to starter last year. The team will need him to become a more efficient scorer and a bigger presence defensively in the paint.
While the Golden Eagles were quiet in the portal, a talented group of incoming freshmen led by Damarius Owens is poised to impress. ESPN’s 81st-ranked recruit, the 6-7 Owens is an explosive scorer in the paint and a solid shooter.
This year’s Marquette squad does not have the ceiling of last year’s group. But this deep, veteran crew has the components for an NCAA Tournament run.
