This wasn’t what the Marquette men’s basketball team wanted in one of its most anticipated games of the season.
The ninth-ranked Golden Eagles couldn’t overcome falling into a big hole in the first half and fell to No. 25 Connecticut, 77-69, on Saturday at Fiserv Forum.
MU (18-4, 9-2 Big East) fell into a tie with Creighton behind St. John’s (10-1) in the conference standings. The Golden Eagles play both those teams on the road next week.
MORE: Box score | MU schedule | Standings
Connecticut (16-6, 8-3) was once again without star freshman sharpshooter Liam McNeeley. But the Huskies still shot 12 for 19 (63.2%) on three-pointers, with Solo Ball hitting seven and scoring 25 points.
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MU trailed by 22 points in the first half, its largest deficit of the season. MU missed its first 7 three-pointers and was 3 for 10 in the first half. The Golden Eagles also really struggled at the free-throw line, going just 10 for 20 in the first 20 minutes.
Chase Ross, who finished with 19 points, gave MU some life by hitting a three-pointer just before halftime to get the Golden Eagles within 42-29.
Ball had big shots every time MU got close in the second half.
MU closed the gap to 44-35 with 16:54 left on a layup by Stevie Mitchell.
Ball hit a three. Ball hit another big triple a few minutes later for a 52-38 lead.
He added another huge three after Kam Jones got MU within 66-59 with 5:47 left.
Ball finally had the dagger to make it 75-66 with just under 2 minutes remaining.
More:How have Marquette players built chemistry? Stevie Mitchell thinks it might be the Legos
Will NBA draft prospect Liam McNeeley play for UConn after ankle injury?
Connecticut freshman sharpshooter Liam McNeeley suffered a high-ankle sprain on Jan. 1. The Huskies announced just before the game that McNeeley will sit out.
It will be his eighth straight missed game. The Huskies were 4-3 without him heading into the game. But it sounds like McNeeley is close to returning.
“Liam practiced today,” Connecticut coach Dan Hurley said Friday on a conference call. “You know he was almost full practice. He went live, we’ll talk to him later tonight, see how he feels in the morning, go through shoot around, and the day we’ve all been waiting for, the dreaded game game-time decision. Game-day decision.”
The 6-foot-7 McNeeley is averaging 13.6 points and shooting 37.9% on three-pointers. He is widely seen as a first-round pick in the NBA draft.
Marquette’s probable starting lineup
Guards: Kam Jones, Stevie Mitchell, Chase Ross
Forwards: Ben Gold, David Joplin
Connecticut’s probable starting lineup
Guards: Hassan Diarra, Solo Ball
Forwards: Jaylin Stewart, Alex Karaban
Center: Samson Johnson
Marquette vs UConn odds
Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Friday
- ODDS: Marquette by 7.5
- O/U: 145.5
Marquette-Connecticut prediction
It’s not just Liam McNeeley who is banged up for the Huskies, but Connecticut coach Dan Hurley said top defensive guard Hassan Diarra is dealing with some minor injuries but should play. So the Golden Eagles should be able to take advantage of that and a juiced-up crowd.
Prediction: Marquette 75, Connecticut 71
What channel is Marquette vs UConn on tonight?
- TV: Fox
- Stream: You can stream the game on the Fox Sports app through your television carrier. Also, FUBO has a free trial for new subscribers.
- Announcers: Gus Johnson (play-by-play), Jim Jackson (analyst) and Kristina Pink (court reporter) will call the game.
Next five games on Marquette’s schedule
- Feb. 4: at St. John’s, 5:30 p.m.
- Feb. 8: at Creighton, 1 p.m.
- Feb. 11: DePaul, 7:30 p.m.
- Feb. 18: Seton Hall, 8 p.m.
- Feb. 21: at Villanova, 6 p.m.
