Marquette has the defense to neutralize Xavier's 87th-ranked offense. Marquette is 56th in the nation, allowing just 67.4 points per game. The one area where Marquette will have to be careful is with Xavier's three-point shooting, but the Golden Eagles have been above-average this season with a 31.7% three-point efficiency allowed.

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Xavier 59, No. 7 Marquette 57 Zach Freemantle had 14 points and 10 rebounds and Xavier hung on in the final seconds to beat No. 7 Marquette 59-57 to earn its third straight victory while snapping