Jimmy Butler scored 20 points and Marquette took command early to defeat South Dakota 82-69 on Saturday. But coach Buzz Williams wasn’t happy with his teams effort in the win.
“I’m glad it’s over,” Williams said. “I thought we were average at best. It was by far our worst performance of the year.”
The Golden Eagles face top ranked Duke in the semifinals of the CBC Classic in Kansas City on Monday night. Williams knows his team will have to be a lot better to have any chance against the Blue Devils.
Marquette dominated points in the paint, 48-34, but their bench was outscored 25-15 and were outscored on the fast break 27-16. The Golden Eagles also turned it over 23 times, to 17 for South Dakota.
Chris Otule added a career high 15 points for the Golden Eagles (4-0).