The Marquette Golden Eagles defeated the Wisconsin men's basketball team 81-76 on Saturday night at the Kohl Center, putting an end to Wisconsin's 28-game home winning streak.
In head-to-head matchups, Wisconsin (6-2) had won seven of the last nine meetings, but Marquette beat Wisconsin with its aggressive play on the boards, along with its stifling second-half defense.
The first half began at a fast pace, with both teams exchanging baskets. About midway through, Marquette was finally able to pull away and extend its lead to eight. But the Badgers refused to give in, making their own run to take a lead with two minutes to go in the half. The Badgers went into the break trailing only by two, 43-41.
In the second half, the Badgers had many opportunities, as Marquette got into early foul trouble. Wisconsin regained a 50-46 lead with 15 minutes remaining in the game.
However, the game's final five minutes oversaw a complete change in momentum as Marquette held Wisconsin to just three field goals. The Badgers' poor shooting at the free throw line came back to bite them, as they missed 12 of 22 from the stripe. In comparison, Marquette made 10 of its 14 free throws and had 12 offensive rebounds in the second half to secure a victory.
Marquette head coach Tom Crean was impressed with his team's approach to the in-state rivalry, Marquette's first win in Madison since 1997.
You know if you're going to come into this game, you're going to have to play with emotion, play with enthusiasm and energy, but you're going to have to be smart and you have to be tough,"" Crean said. ""I think we had that smartness and that toughness that leads to maturity, and that's what we did today.""
Marquette was anchored by its two standout junior guards, Dominic James and Jerel McNeal. James's quickness made life difficult for Wisconsin defenders, leading all Marquette scorers with 20 points to go along with six assists. McNeal finished with 14 points and five steals, and was a major contributor to Marquette's 22 points off Wisconsin turnovers.
Like their matchup against Duke, the Badgers had a major size advantage over Marquette, as the Golden Eagles played a small lineup with only one starter taller than 6'6'. But the Golden Eagles out-hustled the Badgers inside, beating Wisconsin 44-30 on points in the paint and 26-18 on second chance points.
""I've coached against so many teams that were bigger than teams that I've coached and out-rebounded them,"" UW head coach Bo Ryan said. ""You still have to get position. You still have to go get the ball.""
Senior forward Brian Butch gave the Badgers an early boost by scoring the team's first three field goals and finished with 20 points. But Butch also had just five rebounds, with only one on the defensive side.
Senior guard Michael Flowers started his first game of the season, and was very effective with 14 points on six-of-seven shooting. But Flowers and sophomore guard Trevon Hughes were both plagued by foul trouble late in the second half, and fouled out in the game's final minute.
The Badgers will try to bounce back from their defeat this Wednesday night, as they go on the road for a matchup against UW-Milwaukee.
