It only took three games for Marquette head coach Shaka Smart to land his first big-time win as the Golden Eagles' head coach. Marquette was down 12 points with just over 10 minutes on the clock before storming back to beat No. 10 Illinois, 67-66.
The rally was sparked by Marquette's defense, as Golden Eagles were able to score 28 points off of Illinois' 26 total turnovers — seven of which came from the Illini's star guard Andre Curbello.
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Marquette's 21-8 run to finish the game with the victory was capped off by a late-game steal by Tyler Kolek, which resulted in a layup giving the Golden Eagles the 67-66 lead.
WHAT AN ENDING! pulls off the upset over No. 10 Illinois
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX)
Shaka Smart's squad was led by Darryl Morsell and Justin Lewis, who scored 21 and 17 points respectively. Although Illinois was without its star big man Kofi Cockburn due to a three-game suspension, the Illini found help from four players who scored in double-digits, led by Trent Frazier who scored 23 points behind 6-10 shooting from three-point land.
Frazier and company will try and bounce back from the early-season loss when they face Cincinnati on Monday, November 22. Marquette will play Ole Miss next on Thursday, November 18.
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