Wisconsin Sports Today

Wisconsin Sports Today Continuously Updated

Explosive second half helps Marquette down Southern, 100-82, in Shaka Smart’s 100th win

by

Shaka Smart could have had a lot to think about going into Wednesday’s game.

Yes, Marquette men’s basketball played Southern — a team its never lost to and ranked 177th on KenPom.com — but there were many unknowns. Were the first half nerves going to return? Could more rookies step up? How would the 3-point shooting look? What about the bench rotations? Would the short, two-night rest period from the season-opener rear its head?

With this new-look Marquette team having a mere 40 minutes under its belt after Monday’s game against Albany, there were still details to iron out. Buffs to polish. Even more questions to answer, or at least try.

During their 100-82 win against the Jaguars (0-2), the Golden Eagles (2-0) didn’t smooth everything out, but they showed what’s possible — for good (how dominantly they can play with pace) and bad (how un-dominantly they can play without it).

“We always make it known that we want to come in here and win,” sophomore forward Caedin Hamilton said. “We do it for the guys that’s between the lines.”

Or, bad and good, rather, given how the game played out.

A sluggish start, not breaking away by more than four points for more than 10 minutes and never leading by double-digits in the first half. Lackluster 3-point shooting, going into the locker room 6-for-18. Losing down low, scoring half the Jaguars’ paint points (24-12) in the opening 20 which negated their turnover advantage. Again being stymied by a zone defense.

It all ended with the Golden Eagles holding a six-point advantage, 43-37, at the break and a similar feeling to when they went into the locker room against the Great Danes 48 hours prior.

But, also in similar vain to Monday, the Golden Eagles began to find their groove in the second half and show Fiserv Forum what they can do. Their good.

The fact at any point they can go on an extended run, scoring 12-straight to lead by 20-plus points for the first time all night. And they can do it at breakneck speed, putting together that double-digit scoring run in under two minutes, penetrating a zone in the process.

“That’s how we want to play because we got a lot of guys,” Smart said, “so you might as well play with aggressiveness and run and fly down the floor and play with great effort because we got guys that can come in and sub in, and most teams are not going to go that deep.”

And finally, they have someone in Chase Ross who can lead when needed, scoring a game-most 23 points — four shy of his career-high — to go along with six rebounds and six assists. Beyond Ross, all the rest of the starters scored double-digit points, as well.

Smart didn’t treat his bench in the same manner as Monday, not fiddling with rotations until after the 12-point run to open the game, something — along with the starting lineup — he said will remain flexible throughout the season.

“It depends on our guys,” Smart said. “The rotation is going to be different depending on the opponent, depending on who practices well, depending on who plays well, depending on who has the look of their eye. That shows me that they have the spirit and energy that we require.”

Unknowns or uncertainty for the future, Smart showed one thing that has been predictable for a while. Wednesday was his 100th win with Marquette, making him tied for the second-quickest blue & gold coach to go triple platinum.

“I want to go after 100, 200, 300, 400 more. But it’s really about one game,” Smart said. “You want to win the next game and the next practice and help these guys move forward.”

Marquette will travel down I-94 to the United Center in Chicago to play Indiana on Sunday, Nov. 9. Tipoff is at noon and ESPN will hold the broadcast.

This recap was written by Benjamin Hanson. He can be reached at benjamin.hanson@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X @benhansonMU.