Finley Bizjack helps Butler continue win streak vs. Marquette
Finley Bizjack scored 28 points to lead Butler to an 87-76 victory over visiting Marquette in Indianapolis on Friday night.
Michael Ajayi added 17 points and nine rebounds for Butler (13-7, 4-5 Big East), which has now won three conference games in a row after starting 1-5 in Big East play. Jamie Kaiser Jr. and Drayton Jones each added 11.
Nigel James Jr. and Chase Ross led the Golden Eagles (7-14, 2-8) with 15 points each while James also dished eight assists. Royce Parham added 14, with 12 of those coming in the first half.
The Bulldogs took the early lead to start, jumping out to a 17-8 lead less than six minutes in.
Marquette pulled closer with a run and would trail by just one possession for large segments of the final eight minutes of the half. But Butler never relinquished its lead, taking a 41-36 advantage into the break.
The Bulldogs once again started strong in the second half, building a lead as large as 11 points with 13:46 left.
The Golden Eagles later went on a 7-0 to bring the deficit back down to three at 60-57 with 9:07 to play.
The offenses started to excel late in the second. Marquette went on a stretch where it made 9 of 10 shots from the field. Despite that, Butler continued to hang onto its slim edge thanks to its own strong shooting.
Out of the final media timeout, the Bulldogs went on a 7-0 run to take a commanding 81-72 lead with 2:26 to play. That would turn into a 13-2 run which sealed a much-needed win to maintain Butler's hopes at an NCAA Tournament at-large bid.
After going just 1-for-10 from deep in the first half, Butler shot 5-for-9 from beyond the arc in the second, complimenting its strong 51.9% shooting from the floor overall on the night.
With the win, Butler snaps its three-game home losing streak against Marquette as well as the Golden Eagles' three-game winning streak in the overall series.