Rutgers Runs Past Marquette

Look, I'm too tired from shoveling and sledding to wax poetic on the game today, a humbling 91-84 loss at the hands of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Here's the simple truth: for the first time in three months, Marquette lost a game it should have won. Consider what MU had going for it today at the RAC:

• One full week to prepare;
• A healthier Matthews and James;
• Facing a team riddled with injury and absent its best inside player;
• Facing a team reeling from three consecutive losses;
• Facing a team without its head coach;
• Playing a road game in an arena that's far from capacity due to a record-setting snowstorm.

Credit Rutgers with simply outrunning MU. 91 points!? The Scarlet Knights scored 26 points -- in the last 7:50 of the game. Rutgers shot 57% from the field in the second half.

Defense like this will cost a team a shot at an NCAA bid, especially with two of the nation's top 15 teams coming your way within a 40-hour period later this week. Unless MU splits this week at home with Georgetown and Pitt, the wins just won't add up to a brass ring on Selection Sunday. And while the team has greatly exceeded expectations this seaso, today's loss is a bitter pill to swallow. But, with two home games this week, opportunity is still knocking for MU.

Quincy Douby led RU with 32 points, while Dominic James paced Marquette with 22. Steve Novak added 18. Marquette fell to 16-8 overall and 6-5 in the Big East. Next up for MU are the Georgetown Hoyas on Thursday night at the Bradley Center.

Time to regroup, hold serve at home -- and get rolling again. Fire up, MU!

Here is the MJS recap from Rosiak.

Here is the GoMarquette.com recap.

Here is the box score.

Here is the Courier-News recap.

Here is the recap from the Rutgers blog.