Markus Howard – Photo Courtesy of Marquette University
The Marquette Golden Eagles jumped out to a quick start and led second ranked Kansas 47-38 at halftime. But the Jayhawks opened the second half with 22 unanswered points to pull out a 77-68 victory in the NIT Season Tip-Off at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
The Golden Eagles missed their first 10 shots and added five turnovers before junior forward Sam Hauser hit a three-pointer with 10:45 left to play. Kansas turned a 9-point deficit into a 13-point lead and improved to 4-0 with the win.
Marquette struggled to score in the second half and didn’t attack the basket at all. The Golden Eagles didn’t shoot free throws until there was 4:21 left in the game. They finished 4 for 5 from the line.
Sam Hauser led Marquette in scoring with 20 points. Markus Howard added 18 but hit just 6 of 23 from the field.
Marquette returns to action Friday when they take on Louisville in the NIT Season Tip-Off consolation game.