Perhaps the biting cold sweeping the Midwest got into the bones of some of the ballers from Butler and Marquette. Both teams started slow, and were it not for Markus Howard, the first half would have been one of the ugliest offensive halves in the NCAA this year. The halftime score was just 34-25 with Marquette leading, and Howard had 19 points. In the second half, the offense picked up some, but mostly for Marquette. Butler never really challenged and the Golden Eagles prevailed 76-58.
Marquette has struggled historically against Butler, and especially at Hinkle Fieldhouse.