Golden Eagles Soar Past Badgers, 63-54

Box Score

Milwaukee?Marquette exploded into tonight?s game against intra-state rival Wisconsin, scoring 12 points in four minutes to run to a 63-54 victory over the 24th ranked Badgers in front of a raucous Bradley Center crowd of 18, 611.

A stunned Wisconsin team (5-2), was unable to stop the scoring drive in the opening six minutes and watched as the Golden Eagles (9-0), led by senior point guard Travis Diener who scored ten points in the first four minutes of play, jump out to a 12 -1 lead.

?I just think right from the start our guys were looking forward to playing a game against a nationally ranked team,? Diener said. ?We got off to that great start and our energy level was really high tonight.?

Diener scored a team high 29 points in tonight?s win in a series that has been playing since 1917.

?The key to (Travis) is giving some of that God-given confidence that he has to his teammates. To me that?s his greatness because he can score, he can pass, he can makes others score, but what?s the best is his confidence,? coach Tom Crean said.

Marquette won the rebounding battle tonight, grabbing 44 boards to the Badgers 28. Marcus Jackson beat his career-high rebounding record of 13 with his 15 total, 11 coming in the second half.

The Badgers came back in the last minutes off of a run started when Alando Tucker cut the Golden Eagles? lead to nine with a three-pointer with five minutes left, Steve Novak answered with one of his own to reclaim a double-digit lead.

?Give them credit, they came back, they made some shots but we always had an answer for them,? Diener said.

In the last minutes of play, Wisconsin?s full court press interrupted Marquette?s offense and allowed the Badgers to come as close as six points. The Golden Eagles were able to hold on to the lead as the team went 5-7 from the free-throw line in the last minute of play.

?It was clearly, clearly a team victory for us against a formidable foe,? Crean said. ?I thought our guys really stepped up on the defensive end. I think the fact that Marcus Jackson has 11 rebounds in the second half was key.?

In the first half, Marquette was able to hold the Badgers from scoring a field goal for the first six minutes, until Clayton Hanson hit a three point shot, making the score 12-4.

The Golden Eagles then went cold and allowed Wisconsin time to come within six points. A Steve Novak jump shot followed by back-to-back Novak treys built the score back to 23-9. Diener and Novak combined to make five first half three-point shots. Marquette led at halftime 34-23.

Novak?s 11 points were enough to place him second on the team in scoring, Joe Chapman added nine.

Tonight?s game was the teams? 111th meeting and Marquette won for the 51st time.

The Golden Eagles now take on Arizona on Sat. Dec. 18 at 1 p.m. at the Bradley Center.
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