#MUBB Faces No. 5/8 Maryland For Orlando Invite Title

The Marquette University men's basketball team (5-1, 0-0 BIG EAST) will face No. 5/8 Maryland (7-0) in the championship game of the Orlando Invitational on Sunday, Dec. 1 at 12 p.m. CT. ESPN will feature the national television broadcast, with Dave Feldman (play-by-play) and Dan Dakich (analyst) calling the action. A victory by Marquette would be the team's first regular season tournament title since claiming the Legends Classic in 2015-16 at the Barclays Center with wins over LSU and Arizona State. MU played in the title matchup of the Orlando event in 2009, falling 57-56 to Florida State.

Howard's Scoring Ability On Full Display

Most people come to Orlando over the Thanksgiving holiday to visit Disney, but the argument could be made that the best attraction in town this week has been the performance of senior guard Markus Howard.

One night after breaking the Orlando Invitational single-game scoring record with 40 points, a mark previously held by former Marquette player Matt Carlino (38 vs. Georgia Tech, 2014), Howard netted 51 points in the victory over USC.

Howard finished 11-of-24 from the field, including a 9-of-17 effort from behind the 3-point line, leaving a plethora of notable accomplishments to digest.

Set Orlando Invitational three-game point total record (91) in just two games. Previous mark was 77 by Justin Robinson of Monmouth in 2015.
Only player in last 20 years with multiple 50-point games and owns 3-of-4 in BIG EAST history (Marshon Brooks, Providence vs Notre Dame Feb. 23, 2011).
Owns three of the five 50-point games by active NCAA players.
51 points tied NCAA high in 2019-20 (Christian Lutete, UMass Lowell vs. Long Island).
Fourth player in major conference history with 40 points on consecutive days, joining Johnny Neumann (Ole Miss), Pete Maravich (LSU) and Bob Pettit (LSU).

Offense Getting Attention, But Defense Worthy

While Markus Howard's offensive explosion is getting well-deserved recognition, the team's effort on the defensive end shouldn't be overlooked.

Davidson and USC have combined to shoot just 11.1 percent (3-of-27) from behind the 3-point line and turned the ball over an average of 17.0 times in the two outings. For the season, Marquette opponents are shooting just 38.0 percent from the field overall and 27.0 percent from long distance.

The Golden Eagle defense held Davidson to 0-of-15 from behind the 3-point line, snapping the program's run of 809 games with at least one long-distance basket. Six different players missed for the Wildcats on the night.

#MUBB Faces No. 5/8 Maryland For Orlando Invite Title

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Players Mentioned

Markus Howard