MILWAUKEE – The Notre Dame men’s basketball team ran into a very talented Marquette squad in a front of a sellout Fiserv Forum crowd of over 17,000 on Saturday night and were defeated by the final score of 78-59. It really was a tale of two halves as the No. 8/7 ranked Golden Eagles (8-2) caused havoc on both ends of the floor in the first half where they outpaced the Fighting Irish (4-5) 52-24. Notre Dame did show resilience in the second half, where they outscored Marquette 35-26.
Freshman point guard Markus Burton recorded his third game of at least 20 points with exactly 20 tonight. Burton shot 8-of-15 and also secured a season high four steals. The next highest Irish scorer was Julian Roper II with nine points off of three treys.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Marquette’s defense flustered Notre Dame from the tip, as the Golden Eagles’ offense poured in 17 points before the Irish got their first bucket at 12:53. By the 11:30 media, the Irish had coughed up 10 turnovers which included four shot-clock violations, as Marquette built a cushy 21-2 lead.
Markus Burton was the lone offensive highlight in the first half, as he supplied 10 points. The freshman point guard helped cut what was a 26-point Golden Eagles lead to 17, trying to build some momentum before the half. Yet, in the final two minutes, Marquette fired off an 11-0 run to push the lead to 28 points at 52-24.
Marquette shot 17-of-28 (.607) from the field and 6-of-10 from three in the opening half. They ultimately forced 13 ND turnnovers in which they converted into 21 points. Furthermore, 22 of their points came in the paint. Notre Dame in turn shot 9-of-24 (.375) from the floor and 4-of-15 from deep.
Marquette built a lead as large as 30 before Notre Dame’s second half effort brought it down to the final of 19. Burton added 10 more points in the second to get to his final tally of 20.
UP NEXT
After several tough road tests to start the season, the Irish finally get to enjoy a lengthy homestand, six games in fact. After finals week, Notre Dame will commence the homestand with another familiar foe in Georgetown on Saturday, Dec. 16. Tip is slated for 2:15 p.m. ET on The CW.
— ND —