Butler gets signature win, snaps Marquette's 20-game Big East home win streak
Butler and coach Thad Matta have a signature win.
The Bulldogs, trailing by 11 points in the first half, smothered No. 12 Marquette in the second half and won 69-62 Wednesday night in Big East basketball at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.
The outcome ended Marquette’s 19-game home winning streak. It also stopped Marquette’s streak of 20 consecutive Big East home wins, which had tied the conference record.
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Butler (11-5, 2-3) ended a three-game losing streak ahead of a Saturday game against first-place Seton Hall at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Marquette is also 11-5, 2-3.
Butler led by as many as 13 points.
Three takeaways:
Defense does not rest
Defense had not been a Butler strength.
During its three-game losing streak, Butler allowed 86.3 points per game. All three opponents shot better than 50% from the field. Butler came in last in the league in scoring defense (80.75) and 122nd nationally in points allowed per possession.
Yet the Bulldogs were virtually impenetrable in the second half, and all night from the arc.
Marquette shot 27.5% in a 27-point second half, and it was much worse until a late flurry of field goals. For the game, the Golden Eagles shot 6-of-31 from the 3-point line, or 19%.
Tyler Kolek, the reigning Big East player of the year, scored two points on 1-of-13 shooting (0-of-7 on 3s).
Scorers step up
Butler’s three top scorers for the season — Pierre Brooks II, Jahmyl Telfort, DJ Davis — scored a cumulative seven points in the first half. Indeed, Telfort had been mysteriously unproductive in four previous Big East games.
The Bulldogs have no superstar — maybe no All-Big East first- or second-team player — so must win with balance, or with different players holding the hot hand on a different night. If no one is hot, all is for naught.
In the second half, Brooks and Telfort got on track. They combined for 10 of Butler’s first 11 second-half points.
Brooks scored 11 of his 14 points in the second half and finished 4-of-6 on 3s. Landon Moore scored 14 off the bench, and Posh Alexander had 10 points, seven assists and five steals. Jalen Thomas had 10 points and a career-high 14 rebounds.
Turnovers go away
Turnovers have not usually been a problem for Butler, this season or any season. But they had 10 first-half turnovers and were badly disjointed on offense.
Marquette led 9-2 in points off turnovers in the first half. That was the Golden Eagles’ margin.
After that? Butler trimmed the margin to 14-11, and it was better than that until some late-game pressure applied by desperate Marquette.
Take care of the ball, take a big road win.
Contact IndyStar correspondent David Woods at dwoods1411@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.
Butler 69, No. 12 Marquette 62
BUTLER (10-5): Telfort 2-7 2-4 7, Thomas 4-7 2-4 10, Alexander 4-10 1-1 10, Davis 1-4 2-2 4, Brooks 5-10 0-0 14, Moore 4-5 4-4 14, Bizjack 3-8 0-0 8, Screen 1-1 0-0 2, Kapke 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 24-53 11-15 69.
MARQUETTE (11-4): Ighodaro 4-9 4-6 12, Joplin 3-8 0-0 9, K.Jones 9-23 1-1 20, Kolek 1-13 0-0 2, Mitchell 5-10 0-0 10, Gold 0-3 0-0 0, S.Jones 0-2 2-2 2, Lowery 2-5 2-2 7, Norman 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 24-74 9-11 62.
Halftime—Marquette 35-28. 3-Point Goals_Butler 10-22 (Brooks 4-6, Moore 2-3, Bizjack 2-7, Alexander 1-3, Telfort 1-3), Marquette 5-31 (Joplin 3-7, Lowery 1-2, K.Jones 1-10, Mitchell 0-1, Norman 0-1, Gold 0-3, Kolek 0-7). Rebounds_Butler 38 (Thomas 14), Marquette 39 (Ighodaro 9). Assists_Butler 18 (Alexander 7), Marquette 13 (Kolek 8). Total Fouls_Butler 16, Marquette 15.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: 3 reasons Butler basketball upset No. 12 Marquette in Big East play
