The 127th edition of the I-94 Rivalry once again showcased a competitive contest between two of the state's standout men's basketball programs.
Overall, both teams shot cooly inside Fiserv Forum thanks to their respective defenses, but the game came down to the wire in classic form. Unfortunately for Greg Gard and his Badgers, a last-second tip in by Justin Lewis lifted Marquette to a 67-65 victory over No. 4 Wisconsin on Friday night.
Let's take a closer look at the game in tonight’s Stat Pack.
-Credit to both teams' defensive efforts making each other miserable offensively for most of the game -- outside the final minutes of the game with both teams going back and forth. Wisconsin shot 37.5% from the field (21-of-56 overall), while Marquette ended the game hitting 42.9% (21 of 49) of their opportunities.
-Honing in on the first half, UW made just 11 of 31 attempts (35.5%) from the field. From three-point range, that included just four of 13 on attempts from beyond the arc (30.8%). D'Mitrik Trice finished 3-of-5 shooting from deep in the first 20 minutes. The rest of the team? 1-of-8. Marquette did not shoot much better overall in the first half (40.9%), but it hit four of seven three-point attempts.
-Speaking of Trice, the redshirt senior guard's turnover-less streak to start the 2020-21 campaign ended against the Golden Eagles. He committed three turnovers on the evening, but he scored a team-high 17 points on 6-of-14 shooting and tied for the team lead in rebounds (six). He came up big in the final minute, hitting a go-ahead jumper with about five seconds to play while also dishing out a dime to Nate Reuvers (11 points) before that.
-Fouls, fouls, fouls in the first half. UW needed to sit big men Reuvers and Micah Potter, who played just about 11 and 10.5 minutes, respectively, with two fouls each. That dulled the influence of Potter, who scored seven points and two rebounds before sitting the final 7:08 of the half. The Ohio State transfer finished with nine points and five rebounds in 21:38 of play.
-Another Buckeyes transfer but wearing the light blue jersey on Friday night, D.J. Carton was a significant factor for Marquette. Though only making four of 13 field goal opportunities, he was clutch in key times. He contributed 12 points, four rebounds and four assists, plus three steals in nearly 32 minutes on the floor. He hit a three-pointer to end the first half, then drew Trice's first foul with about a second left in the game. He made the one of two free throws to tie the game at 65, with the miss then bouncing to Lewis for the game-winning tip in.
-Overall, Wisconsin was called for 22 fouls in the loss to Marquette's 17. That led to the Golden Eagles to get to the line 28 times (making 20). The Badgers converted on 16 of 19 attempts from the charity stripe. Five Badgers -- Potter, Reuvers, Brad Davison, Tyler Wahl and Ben Carlson -- all tallied two fouls apiece in the first half alone.
-Looking for a positive from the loss? True freshman Johnny Davis again showed spark off the bench and showed he deserved the minutes on the floor, finishing with 12 points and six rebounds (the latter tying with Trice for the team lead). He made four of seven field goal opportunities and did not miss a free throw in four attempts. The first-year guard also played the second-most minutes for UW on Friday night (29 minutes, 38 seconds).
-Ten Badgers turnovers led to 13 Golden Eagle points, and Marquette also led in bench points 26-15. With Davis's 12 points, that means Wahl, Carlson and guard Trevor Anderson combined to score three in about 36 combined minutes. For that matter, all three came from Wahl.
-Points in the paint went in Marquette's favor 26-22. Part of that was due to the play of Lewis, who finished the win over Wisconsin with a game-high 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting and eight rebounds.
-It was a rough game for Davison. The senior guard fouled out and was held to just over 18 minutes of play. He finished with four points and missed all four field goal attempts, though he made four of five free throws.
