Marquette’s Crowder Responds in Hostile Environment
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — When Jae Crowder pulled up for a 3-pointer in transition with his team holding a 3-point lead late in its NCAA Tournament game against Murray State, he didn’t have a great track record from deep.
In fact, the Big East Player of the Year had made just 3 of his previous 19 from beyond the arc at that point.
But Crowder has a short memory and he let it fly anyway.
The ball went through the net and Marquette pulled ahead by six points, quieting the heavily pro-Murray State crowd that included a mixture of yellow-clad Racers’ fans and blue-clad Kentucky faithful.
The No. 3 Golden Eagles held on and advanced past No. 6 Murray State, 62-53, to advance to a Sweet 16 matchup against the Florida/Norfolk State winner. Murray State (31-2) lost for just the second time all season.