Kam Jones scored a team-high 30 points while Oso Ighodaro added 24 to lift No. 8 Marquette past Xavier, 86-80, on Saturday in Cincinnati in the Big East regular-season finale for both teams.
In a game that featured 11 ties and 14 lead changes, Xavier (15-16, 9-11 Big East) took its final lead, 73-72, on a Dayvion McKnight fastbreak layup with 4:02 left in the game.
On the next possession, Marquette (23-8, 14-6) took the lead for good on a step-back 3 from Jones with 3:34 to go.
The Golden Eagles snapped a two-game losing streak, winning their first game in three tries without standout guard Tyler Kolek, who has been sidelined with a strained oblique.
Xavier was paced by Quincy Olivari, honored before the game on Senior Day. He had a game-high 32 points, while McKnight added 16 to go along with eight assists for the Musketeers.
With Xavier leading 23-21 following a Desmond Claude turnaround jumper with 6:41 left in the first half, Marquette took control.
Sparked by 11 points from Jones, the Golden Eagles went on a 16-5 spurt to take their largest lead of the game, 37-28, with 41 seconds left in the half.
Xavier found some valuable momentum at the end of the period, scoring the final five points, including a trey at the buzzer from Olivari.
The Musketeers continued their climb back into the game to start the second half, as Claude drained his first two shots and Olivari added a step-back triple from the corner to put Xavier back on top at 40-39.
Another Olivari 3, this one on the fastbreak, gave the Musketeers a 46-41 advantage with 17:37 remaining.
An Olivari jumper gave Xavier its biggest lead, 57-51, with 13:40 to go. But Ighodaro’s dunk sparked a 10-0 run to move Marquette back in front.
That outburst was ended by Olivari’s sixth 3-pointer as the game continued to swing back and forth.
–Field Level Media