For the second consecutive year, Marquette is headed to the Sweet 16.
In what sounded like a home game for Murray State with it being played in Louisville -- just three hours from the Racers' campus -- the Golden Eagles were able to overcome the crowd Saturday and win, 62-53.
Last year, when Marquette was a No. 11 seed in the NCAA tournament, it took upsets over Xavier and Syracuse to advance to the Sweet 16. So, when the Golden Eagles unexpectedly knocked off No. 3 Syracuse, coach Buzz Williams and his players celebrated like underdogs.
That was not the scene this time around.
After closing out the game on a 21-7 run over the final 8 minutes, Marquette reacted like the team expected to win.
Like last year, Williams again found family members in the crowd immediately after the game and gave them all hugs. But, on his way there this year, he wasn't pounding the scoring table with his fist and shedding tears.
Last season, senior Jimmy Butler could not stop smiling and basking in the moment. This time, senior Jae Crowder just gave a couple small fist pumps before shaking hands with Murray State players.
The Golden Eagles aren't the little guys anymore.
Marquette's Sweet 16 matchup in 2011 was against No. 1 seed North Carolina in a major mismatch of talent and experience. In 2012, the Golden Eagles will be the favorites as they face the winner of No. 7 and No. 15 Norfolk State for the right to move on to the Elite Eight in the West Region.
With Murray State and Marquette each scoring more than 74 points per game this season, it figured to be a high-scoring matchup. However, both teams struggled shooting throughout and Murray State finished at just 31.3 percent with Marquette at 38.2 percent.
Midway through the second quarter, Murray State went on a 9-2 run and took a five-point lead with less than 8 minutes remaining. Then, Williams called a timeout and shifted the momentum drastically.
Following that timeout, the Golden Eagles scored eight unanswered points and led the rest of the way to hand Murray State its second loss of the entire season.
When Marquette really needed one of its players to step up in the key moments late, Crowder -- the Big East's Player of the Year -- delivered on both ends of the floor. With the Golden Eagles up, 51-48, Crowder took a charge and followed that up by drilling a three-point shot to cap off a 13-2 run. The flurry forced Murray State to call a timeout, but the Racers were unable to recover.
Crowder finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds for his second consecutive double-double of the NCAA Tournament. He had 25 points and 16 rebounds against BYU in the opening round.
Darius Johnson-Odom also added 17 for Marquette as the program made its first back-to-back appearance in the Sweet 16 since 1976 and '77.
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