Marquette Golden Eagles The Marquette Golden Eagles , formerly known as the Marquette " Warriors " , Blue and Gold , Hilltoppers , and Golden Avalanche ( football only ) , are the athletic teams representing Marquette University . They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association ( NCAA ) Division I level ( non - football sub - level ) , primarily competing in the Big East Conference for all sports since the 2005 - 06 season . The Golden Eagles previously competed in Conference USA ( C - USA ) from 1995 - 96 to 2004 - 05 , the Great Midwest Conference from 1991 - 92 to 1994 - 95 and the Horizon League from 1988 - 89 to 1990 - 91 . They also competed as an Independent from 1916 - 17 to 1987 - 88 . Men ' s sports include basketball , cross country , golf , lacrosse , soccer , tennis and track & field ; while women ' s sports include basketball , cross country , lacrosse , soccer , tennis , track & field and volleyball . Marquette ' s athletic teams participate at the NCAA Division I level and are members of the Big East Conference . The men ' s basketball team was the 1976 - 77 NCAA National Champion , a 1974 NCAA finalist , the 1970 National Invitation Tournament Champion , and a 2003 Final Four participant . On December 15 , 2012 , Marquette and the other six Catholic , non - FBS Big East schools ( the so - called " Catholic 7 " ) announced that they were departing the Big East for a new conference . In March 2013 , it was confirmed that the " Catholic 7 " , along with three other schools , would begin operations that July as a new Big East Conference . Varsity sports . Men ' s basketball . The men ' s basketball team is ninth in the NCAA for postseason appearances all - time ( 45 ) , including 30 NCAA Tournament appearances ( T - 11th all time ) . The Warriors , coached by Al McGuire , won the 1977 NCAA Tournament and were runners - up in 1974 . Maurice " Bo " Ellis was a member of each of those teams , and remains the only Marquette player to appear in two Final Fours . In 2003 Marquette , coached by Tom Crean and led by Dwyane Wade , Robert Jackson , Steve Novak , and Travis Diener , defeated top - ranked Kentucky to reach the Final Four . In that game , Wade became one of only four players in NCAA Men ' s Tournament history to record a triple - double . Wade was named an AP All - American two years in a row and won Conference USA Player of the Year while at Marquette . Marquette has continued to re - emerge as a national power after 2003 . The program has made 7 straight NCAA tournament appearances dating back to 2006 , and has made consecutive NCAA Sweet 16 appearances in 2011 and 2012 , which marks the first such back - to - back appearances since 1976 - 77 . In 2012 , Marquette experienced their best season since 2003 , tying the single season school record for wins ( 27 ) , finishing 2nd place in the Big East for the 1st time in program history , and finishing ranked in the Top 10 of the AP and USA Today / Coaches Poll for the first time since 2003 . Jae Crowder was also named Big East Player of the Year , the first such conference player of the year honor for a Marquette player since Dwayne Wade in 2003 , Marquette men ' s basketball players whose jerseys have been " retired " : The team plays in the nearby home of the Milwaukee Bucks , the BMO Harris Bradley Center . Conference Affiliations Women ' s basketball . The women ' s basketball team is coached by Terri Mitchell , 2007 A10 Women ' s Basketball Coach of the Year . The program has experienced success in recent years under Mitchell ' s direction , including a run to the championship game of the WNIT , where the women finished as runners - up in 2006 , and won the championship in 2008 . Most recently , the team made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament in 2011 , where they were defeated by top - seeded Tennessee . Marquette women ' s basketball has qualified for the NCAA tournament seven times since 1994 . The team now plays in the Al McGuire Center , named after the former Marquette men ' s coach . The team notably hired Tyler Summitt , the 21 - year - old son of legendary Tennessee coach Pat Summitt , as an assistant effective with the 2012 – 13 season — with the announcement coming on the same day his mother announced her retirement after 38 years leading the Lady Vols . In 2006 , Marquette traveled to St . Thomas to participate in the Paradise Jam Tournament . In the opening round Marquette defeated Western Michigan 74 – 61 . In the second round Marquette defeated Auburn 65 – 61 . On the final day , Marquette beat Xavier 73 – 53 to finish with a 3 – 0 record and win the 2006 Paradise Jam Championship ( St . John division ) Cross - country and track . The cross - country and track teams have produced five Olympians , 13 NCAA champions and 27 All - Americans . Except for Dwyane Wade , Marquette ' s most successful student - athlete was track and field sprinter Ralph Metcalfe , a world - record holder and Olympic gold - medalist . Football ( varsity ) . The varsity football team was known as the " Golden Avalanche " prior to the program being terminated in 1960 . Marquette football posted several successful seasons in the 1920s and 1930s including undefeated seasons in 1922 , 1923 , and 1930 . From 1922 to 1923 Marquette held a 17 – 0 – 1 record and outscored its opponents 374 – 15 . The 1930 Marquette squad had seven games in which it held the opposition scoreless and held a 155 – 7 scoring margin . From 1920 to 1936 Marquette held a 90 – 32 – 6 record . In 1937 the 20th ranked Marquette Golden Avalanche had a 7 – 1 regular season record and appeared in the first Cotton Bowl Classic against Texas Christian University , losing 16 – 6 . NCAA football was last played by Marquette in 1960 , after accumulating several years of budget deficits for the university . Their last successful season was 1953 . Since then , they had accumulated a 10 – 44 – 3 record , including two straight seasons ( 1956 to 1957 ) without a win or even a tie . Marquette Stadium , the football team ' s home since 1924 , was dismantled in 1978 . The sport has since been brought back at the club level . Men ' s golf . Marquette University fields only a men ' s team for golf . Former head coach , Tim Grogan , was honored as The Big East Conference Men ' s Golf Coach of the Year in 2006 and 2008 . The Golf Team holds Marquette ' s only Big East Championship , which was won in 2008 . Mike Van Sickle , class of 2009 , was named to the PING Division I All - American Honorable Mention list in June , 2007 and 2008 . He was a first - team All - American in 2009 . Van Sickle currently holds the school record for single - season average at 70 . 00 strokes per eighteen holes , and most sub - par rounds at 86 . Lacrosse . On December 16 , 2010 , the university announced that it would be adding men ' s and women ' s lacrosse teams to begin play as independents in the 2012 – 13 academic year , before becoming full members of the Big East Conference in men ' s and women ' s lacrosse in 2013 – 14 . Soccer . The men ' s and women ' s soccer programs have achieved varying degrees of success . In 2006 , the men ' s team won just one game and finished last in their conference while the women made a run into the NCAA postseason tournament . Coach Louis Bennett recently joined the men ' s program after years of accomplishment at nearby Milwaukee to help the team match the women ' s success . In June , 2007 , alumnus Dennis Klein donated $ 1 million to spearhead a new , $ 5 million European - style soccer stadium for Marquette . The new stadium is set to open in September 2008 . Both teams currently compete at Valley Fields .