Marquette 92, North Dakota 66: Markus Howard's big first half carries the Golden Eagles

With Marquette playing its first game in 10 days, a little rustiness probably was to be expected. 

Thanks to some hot shooting from junior guard Markus Howard, the Golden Eagles were able to overcome a rough patch in the first half and cruise to a 92-66 victory over North Dakota at Fiserv Forum on Tuesday night.

MU (9-2) scored the first seven points of the game but then got sloppy with the ball.

The Golden Eagles, who are ranked No. 20 by the Associated Press and 23rd in the USA Today coaches poll, had 11 turnovers in the first 11 minutes against the Fighting Hawks (6-5).

BOX SCORE: Marquette 92, North Dakota 66

"I think if you were to ask most college coaches,  these games after exams are very anxiety-provoking," MU coach Steve Wojciechowski said.

"Because the natural rhythm of your practices, what guys are thinking about, the layoff between games can lead to results that are sub-optimal.

"To be frank with you, I thought our guys handled it really well. Save for the turnovers."

Howard didn't show any rust on his shot. He limped out of the game early in the first half but returned a few minutes later. He hadn't even attempted a shot before making a layup at the 10:22 mark to give MU a 19-14 lead. 

A few minutes later, he hit a three-pointer while also getting fouled.

Howard went on to score 14 straight points for MU. The Golden Eagles took control with a 16-4 run that gave them a 35-22 advantage.

Howard finished the first half with 19 points on 7-for-9 shooting, including 4 of 5 on three-pointers, as MU took a 49-27 lead into the locker room. 

The Golden Eagles built a 30-point lead in the second half and then allowed North Dakota to go on a 13-0 run. MU eventually recovered to build the advantage back to 30.

Howard was only needed for seven points in the second half to finish with 26 points. 

Sam Hauser added 21 points in 22 minutes.

Hauser and Howard combined to shoot 9 of 14 on three-pointers. The Fighting Hawks were 3 for 20 from beyond the arc.

MU also got Ed Morrow's best offensive performance this season with 18 points.

"The goal this game was to go inside," Morrow said. "My teammates did a great job of looking inside for everyone.

"We just stuck to the game plan. The game plan was to go inside. We had to make plays down there."

Morrow sat out last season after transferring from Nebraska. He is starting to find his groove with the team after a slow start.

"I thought Ed did a really good job of getting deep paint catches," Wojciechowski said. "I thought we had some really good post feeds, which is an area that we've worked on.

"Ed's a guy who can score with his back to the basket. I thought he was a huge key to this win and, obviously, he just keeps getting better and better. Which is a significant thing for our team."

MU did finish with 22 turnovers. Morrow thought the break between games was a factor.

"With us just having 10 days off, we were just too excited," he said. "We were a little amped up coming out and we made unforced turnovers.

"After we had a discussion in the first timeout, I thought we picked it up and did a better job. We finished the first half with 13 turnovers. Coming into the second half, I thought we did a better job but I think we still have to improve when it comes to taking care of the ball."

MU definitely needs better security on Friday when Buffalo (10-0) – ranked 14th by the AP and No. 15 in the USA Today coaches poll – comes to Fiserv Forum.

"Given my experience with these games after exam break, we did some good things," Wojciechowski said. "Certainly we're going to have to do it a lot better coming (up) on Friday."