Markus Howard poured in 38 points in Saturday's 66-65 win over Villanova.
Marquette's 66-65 Win over Villanova Lived Up to the Hype
By John Fanta
MILWAUKEE - It was everything you hoped a marquee college basketball matchup would be and more. The reigning national champions, an All-American charging the opposition, a long winning streak in the balance and a frenzied sellout crowd.
In a showdown of the BIG EAST’s top two teams, No. 10 Marquette and No. 14 Villanova did not disappoint. Fittingly, the game ended with a stop for the Golden Eagles. Their defensive turnaround has been the primary reason for MU’s rise to the Top 10 in the AP Poll, and it translated into results in the 66-65 win over the Wildcats on Saturday.
“This was a statement win,” said redshirt junior Sacar Anim, who delivered 18 points, the third-best total of his career. “When you look at what Villanova has done and just how much they’ve won, when you beat them it does mean more.”
The Wildcats showed why they had started conference play a perfect 10-0 in how they responded to Marquette’s early second-half surge. Trailing by 15 points with just under 13 minutes left, the Wildcats flipped the script in the ensuing seven minutes and found themselves leading 55-53 with just under six minutes left.
It looked like things were heading down the pathway many college basketball fans have become accustomed to seeing - Villanova would find a way, just as they did en route to two of the last three national titles.
It was at that moment that the Golden Eagles’ Wooden Award Top 20 candidate stepped up in crunch time, giving Marquette the lead back that they would not relinquish.
Markus Howard scored four straight points, including a stepback to make it 57-55. He finished with 38 in total. After a 5-for-18 performance in Tuesday’s one-point loss to St. John’s, the junior said short memory is the key in the BIG EAST.
“You have to think with a ‘next play’ mentality,” said Howard, whose Golden Eagles are 16-0 when he scores 20 or more points. “I came in knowing I had to lead my guys. A game, and a week like this is where experience pays off.”
The experience was seen in the closing sequence, when Marquette closed down on Villanova’s Phil Booth and forced a tough shot by Jermaine Samuels, which fell just short to secure the win.
“Previous teams I have been on don’t win a game like today, but that speaks to the way we have bought into our coaching staff,” said Howard.
“Coach Wojo (Steve Wojciechowski) stressed to us all summer how we needed to lock in on defense,” added Anim. “It’s been a process. On Tuesday, we could stop (Shamorie) Ponds and they (St. John’s) got the win. Today, we finished.”
In the preseason, the Golden Eagles’ expectations were to win a BIG EAST regular season and tournament title. Was it on their minds entering this game?
“Yes, absolutely,” said Anim. “We knew that we had to get them today if we were going to stay alive in the regular season title race.”
As opposed to trailing Villanova by three games in second place, Marquette moved to 9-2 in the league standings, just one game back of 10-1 Villanova. To add to the intrigue, the two still have another meeting inside the Finneran Pavilion.
Mark your calendars for Wednesday, Feb. 27 for that one.