WBB Comes Back to Beat Drake in First Round of WBIT Thursday

DES MOINES, Iowa – The Marquette University women's basketball team came back from being down 10 at the break to beat Drake, 74-69, on Thursday in the first round of the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament.

The Golden Eagles (21-10, 12-6 BIG EAST) were led by Skylar Forbes and Halle Vice who had 18 points apiece.

Jaidynn Mason added 16 points and six assists with 14 points coming in the second half.

Marquette led by four, 20-16, after the first quarter. Halle Vice led all scorers with 10 points in the first frame. Drake outscored Marquette 24-10 in the second quarter to take a 10-point lead into halftime.

The Golden Eagles went on a 15-8 run the first five minutes of the third quarter to cut the deficit to three, 48-45, hitting six-of-seven shots from the floor during that span. The Golden Eagles outscored Drake 25-16 in the third to make it a one-point game headed to the fourth.

There were four ties and one lead change in the fourth quarter. A Bridget Utberg three tied the game at 63 with 4:59 to go. MU took the lead after a Jaidynn Mason jumper with 3:39 remaining.

The Golden Eagles tied their largest lead of the game, leading 69-64 at the 1:56 mark before a 5-0 Drake Run tied it with 1:09 remaining. MU would hold Drake scoreless the rest of the way with a jumper from Mason and free throws from Forbes and Olivia Porter completing the comeback.

Drake (22-12, 15-5 MVC) was led by Katie Dinnebier, who had 25 points, six rebounds and five assists.

NOTABLES:

Program's first win in the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament that is in its second year.
Third double-digit comeback win of the season. MU was down 14 at Rutgers on Nov. 29, 2024 and down 13 against Villanova on Jan. 11, 2025.
Marquette tied its season-high with 14 steals.
Skylar Forbes had a career-high six steals.
Halle Vice tied her career-high with two made 3-pointers.

UP NEXT: Marquette faces the winner of the James Madison-Davidson game on Sunday, March 23.

Keep up with the Marquette women's basketball program through social media by following on X (@MarquetteWBB) and Instagram (@marquettewbb) and `liking' on Facebook (MarquetteWBB).