March 7, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Connecticut Huskies forward Jaden Ross (23) shoots against Marquette Golden Eagles guard Chase Ross (2) during the first half at FiServ Forum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Image Ben Gold prevented Silas DeMary Jr. from hitting the game-tying goal with two seconds left and Marquette lost to No. 1 in Milwaukee on Saturday afternoon. 4 capped a difficult regular season with a 68-62 win over UConn.
Nigel James Jr. led the Golden Eagles (12-19, 7-13 Big East) with 19 points before Gold made the game’s defensive play and prevented the Huskies from clinching the Big East regular season title.
Marquette took a 61-49 lead with 5:26 left when Chase Ross hit a 3 on back-to-back possessions. The Golden Eagles went on a 13-2 run over the next four-plus minutes as the Huskies made it a two-point game following two free throws by Tarris Reed Jr.
After the free throw, James missed a jumper with 14 seconds left and Jaden Ross grabbed the defensive rebound. DeMary moved the ball up the floor and into the paint, but was met by Gold, who contested the jumper and was not called for a foul.
The no-call angered UConn coach Danny Hurley for being thrown out by referee John Gaffney, and Ross hit four free throws with one second left to close it out.
Ross added 14 points for the Golden Eagles, who advance to the Big East tournament with three wins in four games. Royce Parham added 8 of 13 as Marquette regained the lead midway through the second half, and freshman Adrien Stevens scored 7 of 11 late in the first half to keep the Golden Eagles in line after an 8-point deficit.
DeMary led the Huskies (27-4, 17-3) with 17 and Reed added 16, but the Huskies endured a disastrous shooting performance, finishing at 35.6 percent. UConn also made just 3 of 24 3-pointers as Braylon Mullins and Alex Karaban combined for 1 of 15 from behind the arc and 4 of 21 overall.
UConn took advantage of James’ second foul to take a 31-23 lead on two Ross free throws with 2:59 left in the first half, but the Huskies took a 35-33 lead into halftime after James hit a long jumper with 2 seconds left.
Parham scored eight straight points in 80 seconds with two 3s and a nice layup for a 49-45 lead with 13:25 left. The Golden Eagles took a 55-47 lead when James hit an open corner 3 with 9:57 left and Ross hit a 3 on back-to-back possessions for a 61-49 cushion with 5:26 left.
Following two free throws by DeMary, the Gold converted an offensive rebound into a putback dunk for a 64-56 lead with 2:55 left. Ross got an offensive board and then hit a jumper to cut the lead to 64-60 with 82 seconds left to set up a dramatic finish.
–Field level media
