Shaka Smart has had a lot of questions asked about his team through seven games. None have been about Chase Ross.
The senior guard has been one of Marquette men’s basketball’s few guarantees this season, so much so after his 27-point performance in Saturday’s tense 85-71 win against Central Michigan, Smart referenced him not by his name, but an attribute unique to him.
“Right now, we got one really confident guy out there,” he said.
The words “Chase Ross” were not required to understand Smart. Everyone knew to whom he was referring.
It was yet another instance in which Ross carried the Golden Eagles’ offense, scoring his game-most 27 on just eight field-goal attempts (making seven of them), getting to the free-throw line 14 times (hitting 12 of them). He also had a career-most seven assists, five rebounds and three steals.
For Ross, Saturday was his arguably best all-around performance in a Marquette jersey, now being the team leader after occupying various roles in his first three seasons.
This story was written by Ben Ward. He can be found at benjamin.ward@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X at BenWardMU.