Nigel James Earns All-Big East Third Team & All-Freshman Team Honors

Chase Ross also named to the All-Defensive Team

Published on Mar. 9, 2026

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Marquette freshman Nigel James was named to the All-Big East Third Team and the All-Freshman Team, while teammate Chase Ross earned a spot on the All-Defensive Team for the 2025-26 season.

Why it matters

James and Ross' honors highlight Marquette's strong season and the continued development of the team's young talent. Their individual accolades also showcase the Golden Eagles' competitiveness within the highly competitive Big East conference.

The details

James finished the regular season fourth in the Big East in scoring at 16.4 points per game, and during conference play he averaged 19.3 points per game, second only to Xavier's Tre Carroll. He also ranked highly in field goal percentage, assists per game, and steals per game. Meanwhile, Ross led the Big East in steals per game at 2.3 overall and 2.4 in conference play.

  • The Big East awards were announced on Sunday, March 9, 2026, shortly after the end of the regular season.

The players

Nigel James

A freshman guard for the Marquette Golden Eagles who earned All-Big East Third Team and All-Freshman Team honors.

Chase Ross

A Marquette player who was named to the Big East All-Defensive Team after leading the conference in steals per game.

Tre Carroll

A player for Xavier University who led the Big East in scoring during conference play.

Zuby Ejiofor

A player from St. John's University who was the only unanimous selection to the All-Big East First Team.

Acaden Lewis

A freshman player for Villanova University who was named to the All-Big East Second Team.

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What they’re saying

“I told you when I made my Big East honors picks last week, the league LOOOOOOVES getting these awards press releases out as soon as they can. That's why we got the All-Big East Teams announced on Sunday morning, about 12 hours after the regular season ended.”

— Andrew Fleck (yahoo.com)

What’s next

The Big East will continue to announce additional awards this week, including the Big East Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year.

The takeaway

Marquette's strong season was highlighted by the individual accolades earned by Nigel James and Chase Ross, showcasing the team's promising young talent and competitiveness within the Big East conference.