Marquette Basketball erased an 18-point deficit to beat Purdue 65-55 behind 23 points from Koby McEwen. Here are the biggest takeaways from that game.
Marquette Basketball, once down 18 points in the first half, caught fire in the second and used a stellar performance from Utah State transfer Koby McEwen to earn a 65-55 victory over the Purdue.
The Golden Eagles outscored the Boilermakers 40-17 in the final frame to claim their first-ever victory in the Gavitt Tipoff Games and the first win over Purdue in program history.
The 18-point comeback is the largest for the Golden Eagles under head coach Steve Wojciechowski, and he credited his team’s character for that comeback after the game.
"“A 28-point swing in a game is a huge swing, and it takes great character to do that. I thought out players showed great character. I was very proud of that. Obviously, I think we can play better. We’re a work in progress but to grind out a game where you win like that is very good, especially coming in the second game of the year.”"
We knew this would be a revealing game for both programs as they share a similar standing in the national picture as fringe top 25 teams, and we were right. For Purdue, that’s not a good thing, as a trouble late-game trend is starting to take shape.
For Marquette, it was both good and bad, as they found a way to win despite star guard Markus Howard being limited to just 18 points, but struggled along the way.
Here are the three biggest things we learned from Marquette’s stunning comeback victory over Purdue: