Marquette Golden Eagles and Wisconsin Badgers is one of the best rivalries in college basketball. Now and again, there is a clunker like last season. But for the most part, you get dramatic, throw the records out type of basketball game. Marquette stumbled on Tuesday night against Oklahoma State. They only scored 62 points and looked lost with a zone defense. They faced a very good Wisconsin that was ranked fourth in the country. Marquette found a way to win and delivered in the clutch moment with a game-winning tip-in by Justin Lewis. It was one of the most enjoyable wins I’ve had in recent memory.

Player of the Game: Justin Lewis – Welcome one and all to the Justin Lewis fan club. Those who have watched the first few games of the season have seen it out of Lewis. Last night was his arrival. He scored 18 points with 8 rebounds. The last two points and the last rebound was the biggest. It is crazy that Lewis is coming off the bench for Marquette. But you know what? It’s not a bad thing. He plays enough minutes where it doesn’t feel like it. Maybe they add him over Jamal Cain, but Cain brings some unique things to the table too.

Honorable Mention: DJ Carton – The box score will not tell you the DJ Carton story from this game. The story is that DJ Carton showed some balls down the stretch. Carton showed that he can be the man down the stretch. My biggest concern heading into the final four minutes was the idea that no one would step up to the moment. With a young roster, people can get tight. But not Carton. He kept attacking and put Marquette in a place to win. The free throws will come.

One Thing I Liked: Marquette’s game plan could not have worked out better – Looking at this game, I felt it came down to which big men would get in foul trouble? Marquette was relentless to the basket. They kept attacking the rim and trying to draw contact. Marquette shot nine more free throws than Wisconsin. Now, they only made four more but in a close game, that matters. Marquette needs to keep this approach. May the Oklahoma State game be the last where the Golden Eagles think they’re a three-point shooting team.

One Thing I Didn’t Like: Slow start in the second half – It didn’t matter at the end of the day, but Marquette looked very sluggish to start the second half. They had a five-point lead and it vanished quicker than someone ghosting a Marquette co-ed on Tinder. Golden Eagles need to be better in this area. They struggled with this against Oklahoma State and a bit with Eastern Illinois. Those first five minutes of the second half are crucial.

Next up: Marquette gets ready to take on Green Bay on Tuesday. This is a big, flashing letdown if I’ve ever seen one. Green Bay is not good, but letdowns are so natural after a game like this one. Marquette needs to play their game and try to avoid letting that happen on Tuesday night.

Charlie.