For only the third time in program history, the Marquette Golden Eagles have gotten the better of the top ranked team in the country. Tuesday night, Marquette, ranked 4gh by the AP and 5th in the Coach’s poll, dominated the number one Kansas Jayhawks 73-59 in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational tournament. It was a lock down defensive effort as the Golden Eagles forced 18 turnovers and held their leading scorer, Hunter Dickinson to 13 points. Oso Ighodaro led Marquette with 21. Chase Ross put up 12 and Kam Jones finished with 10. The game got testy late in the first half when Kevin McCuller of Kansas knocked down a three in front of the Marquette bench and had a word or two passing by Head Coach Shaka Smart. Smart took exception and as time was called, players from both teams converged on the floor. Technical fouls were assessed to both Smart and Kansas Coach Bill Self. It’s been an impressive week in Hawaii for Marquette, taking down UCLA in round one, now Kansas. The Golden Eagles will now face second ranked Purdue, a 71-67 winner over #8 Tennessee, in the Maui Invite title game Wednesday afternoon.
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