Marquette, Butler seek to turn fortunes around in Big East battle
While little has gone right for Marquette this season, it has found some success on its home court of late.
The Golden Eagles (8-15, 3-9 Big East) hope that carries over into Saturday's game against Butler in Milwaukee.
Marquette could be getting the Bulldogs (13-10, 4-8) at the right moment as they enter on a three-game losing streak.
Barring a conference tournament miracle, the Golden Eagles' run of four NCAA Tournament appearances in as many seasons under coach Shaka Smart will come to an end.
But since a 1-7 start to conference play, Marquette has won two of its last four games, both at home. Last time the Golden Eagles played at home, they delivered a surprising 86-62 thrashing of Creighton on Jan. 27.
Overall, Marquette has won three of its last four home games. The Golden Eagles have had a week off since their last game, a 69-64 loss at Seton Hall in which they led by eight at halftime but failed to secure their first road/neutral-site win.
"Coming out of the half, especially when we're up, we got to continue to, we always say, ‘Step on their throats,'" forward Ben Gold said. "Be the aggressive team."
Marquette freshman Nigel James Jr. continues to be a bright spot in a down season. He scored 16 points in the loss and averages a team-high 15.4 points per game.
Butler has lost three straight games since the last time it faced Marquette, an 87-76 win in Indianapolis on Jan. 23.
That has sent the Bulldogs spiraling towards the bottom of the Big East pack.
Butler has been struggling despite being led by a pair of All-Big East frontrunners in Finley Bizjack (second in the Big East with 17.7 points per game) and Michael Ajayi (conference-leading 11.3 rebounds per game, fourth in scoring at 16.2 ppg).
Bizjack went off for a season-high 30 points in the team's last game at Providence on Feb. 4. However, he missed a pair of free throws with 1.3 seconds left in regulation after he had been 12-for-12 at the line, and the Bulldogs lost 97-87 in double overtime.
It was the culmination of Butler blowing a six-point lead with 3:06 left in regulation.
"By no means, obviously, did that cost us the game," Butler coach Thad Matta said. "We had other plays we needed to make along the way."