One of the most historic basketball rivalries in the state of Wisconsin went down Friday night. No. 4 Wisconsin (3-1, 0-0 Big Ten) was handed their first loss of the season against Marquette (3-1, 0-0 Big East) in what turned out to be a gritty rivalry game. Wisconsin and Marquette split the last 10 meetings, but Marquette broke the tie with their 67–65 win.
Both teams got out to a slow start shooting the ball in the first half. The Badgers were just 11-for-31 from the field while Marquette shot the ball only 9-for-22 from the floor. A skewed foul count proved to be unfavorable for the Badgers in the first half, as Marquette got to the free-throw line to shoot 17 free throws while Wisconsin attempted just four.
These two teams are no strangers to tough defensive games. In the first-ever meeting between these two teams, the final score was 15–14 in favor of the Badgers. This time around the edge went to Marquette in a game that came down to the final possession.
The game was sealed on the final play of the game when D.J. Carton of Marquette drew a foul on D’Mitrik Trice behind the perimeter on the left wing. Carton went to the free-throw line where he sank his first free throw to tie the game at 65. With 0.9 seconds remaining on the clock, Carton missed the second free throw, but freshman Justin Lewis was in on the play and tipped the ball in as time expired, capping off a 67–65 victory for Marquette. Lewis led all scorers in the game with 18 points.
The foul count did start to even out throughout the second half and ended up favoring Marquette by five. The excessive fouls going both ways took both teams out of any type of rhythm and turned the game into a game decided at the line. The edge went to Marquette in the free throw contest, as they shot 20-for-28 from the free throw line while the Badgers went 16-for-19 from the line.
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The leading scorer for the Badgers was Trice with 17 points. Trice also added six rebounds and two assists. Wisconsin only had 15 points off the bench, and 12 of those points came from freshman Jonathan Davis. As a team, Wisconsin shot just 37.5% from the floor on 56 attempts.
The Badgers winning streak halts at 11 games, extending back to the end of last season. Wisconsin will look to get back on track Wednesday night when they take on Louisville in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. That game is set to air on ESPN at 6:15 p.m.
