Solo Ball scored 25 points and Alex Karaban added 15 as No. 25 UConn held off a strong second-half push from No. 9 Marquette, winning 77-69 in a Big East matchup on Saturday night in Milwaukee.
Samson Johnson chipped in 13 points for UConn (16-6, 8-3 Big East), who shot an impressive 59.5 percent from the field, including 12-of-19 from 3-point range. Ball made 7 of 11 shots, hitting 7 of 9 from beyond the arc.
Kam Jones scored 22 points and Chase Ross contributed 19 for Marquette (18-4, 9-2 Big East), which trailed by as much as 22 points in the first half. This was only their second home loss in 13 games.
Marquette made a run in the second half, cutting the lead to 66-59 after Jones’ layup with 5:47 left.
Stevie Mitchell stole the ball and scored a breakaway layup to make it 69-63 with 2:50 to go, but Ball responded with a 3-pointer, putting UConn up 75-66 with 1:48 remaining.
UConn allowed Marquette to stay in it by missing the front end of two bonus free throws. David Joplin’s deep 3-pointer pulled Marquette to 75-69 with 38 seconds left.
Ball then made two free throws to push the lead back to 77-69, and Marquette missed its last six shots, preventing any further comeback.
Marquette forced 25 turnovers, including 11 steals, but struggled from long range, making just 7 of 22 3-pointers and 12 of 22 free throws.
Marquette ended the first half with a 9-point run, trimming UConn’s lead to 42-29 at the break. UConn opened the second half strong, but Marquette answered with a 6-point run to cut the deficit to single digits.
The Huskies responded with an 8-3 run, extending their lead to 52-38 on a 3-pointer by Ball.
UConn dominated most of the first half, taking a 42-20 lead on two free throws by Karaban with 2:27 left.
Ross sparked a 9-point run for Marquette, hitting two 3-pointers, including a buzzer-beater, bringing the Golden Eagles within 42-29 at halftime.
Jones and Ross each had 12 points in the first half on 8-of-13 shooting, while the rest of the Marquette team went 0-for-12.
UConn jumped out to a 19-9 lead as Marquette struggled, hitting just 3 of its first 14 shots, including 0-for-6 from beyond the arc.
