Marquette vs. Western Kentucky injury report, March 22: Latest on Tyler Kolek, Oso Ighodaro, and more

In the first round of 2024 March Madness, the No. 2 seed Marquette Golden Eagles will face the No. 15 seed Western Kentucky Hilltoppers at 2 p.m. ET.

Marquette (25-9) is coming off a 73-57 loss to UConn in the Big East tournament finals. Western Kentucky (22-11) won the Conference USA Tournament after defeating 78-71.

Marquette vs Western Kentucky injury report

The Marquette Golden Eagles have a couple of players on the injury report, while Western Kentucky enters March Madness completely healthy.

Tyler Kolek, Marquette

Marquette is getting good news before March Madness as guard Tyler Kolek is expected to play on Friday against Western Kentucky.

Kolek hasn't played since Feb. 28 as he's dealt with an injury, but head coach Shaka Smart says all signs point to him playing.

"The plan is for him to play," Smart said, via JSOnline. "But he's got to go through a progression this week. And so once we get back on the practice court, we'll be able to continue that progression...

"To be honest, the best part about it is for the guys that played this last weekend, and for Tyler, it's just another 24 hours to get ourselves where we want to be when the ball goes up in the air."

Getting Kolek back is massive for the Golden Eagles, as he's averaging 15 points, 4.7 rebounds and 7.6 assists per game.

Oso Ighodaro, Marquette

Oso Ighodaro is questionable to play on Friday against Western Kentucky due to a knee injury.

Ighodaro played against UConn but he is a bit banged up heading into March Madness.

This season, the Golden Eagles senior forward is averaging 14 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game.

Sean Jones, Marquette

Sean Jones will not play at all in March Madness as he's out for the season with a knee injury.

Jones hasn't played since January 10, and the sophomore guard has appeared in only 16 games this season. Before the injury, he was averaging 5.8 points, 2.0 assists and 1.5 rebounds.