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In Marquette’s long-sought win over Wisconsin, a hug highlights the weight of the moment

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They huddled together, arm around body, hand on shoulder. 

One, the 6-foot-5 point guard who scored 32 points to go along with six assists and four steals in another national player of the year caliber performance. Two, the 6-foot-3 glue guy who scored two crucial and-one layups in the second half and dropped 12 on the day. Three, the tallest of the bunch, the 6-foot-8 microwave scorer turned lockdown defender who posted 13. Four, the walk-on whose rousing halftime speech in the 2023 Big East tournament quarterfinals spurred his teammates to a comeback victory and eventual banner. Five, the man who brought them all together, white polo worn proud, relishing in the moment.

Four brothers, one coach.

There, on the sidelines, the five family members hugged. The clock read 34 seconds, the scoreboard 88-74. Long completed was the work, long taken care of was business. 

There, next to their team’s bench, it happened, the quintuple embrace. A pause at the end of a chaotic 40 minutes, a breath at the end of a fight, a reminiscence of a successful revenge four years in the making.

When the three seniors walked off the court together for the final time of No. 5 Marquette men’s basketball’s 13-point win over 11th ranked Wisconsin Saturday at Fiserv Forum, they took a moment with their leader to enjoy the fruits of their labor. 

“Those guys, they all have great fathers, but they feel like my sons. We’ve built this program together. We’ve built this program together,” white-polo-wearing head coach Shaka Smart said.

“Those four guys have just been such foundational people, before you even get to the basketball, in shaping the culture that we have.” 

It was a hug four years in the making. For once, a game against in-state rival Wisconsin that didn’t end in sorrow defeat. Their first year, it was an 89-76 loss on the road. In 2022, it was a heartbreaking 80-77 overtime fall. Last season, it was 75-64. Then, finally, Saturday, victory. 

“The seniors, we came together last night, was just like, ‘Not tomorrow,’” the 32-point man with a plan Kam Jones said. “‘Not tomorrow afternoon.’”

Yeah, you could tell by how they played.

When David Joplin put on his chef hat and cooked up his only 3-pointer of the night at the perfect time, to erase a halftime deficit and tie the game 47-47, you could tell.

You could tell when Jones gave Marquette (9-1) its first lead of the second half on the next play with a signature left-handed layup that requires a technique only he possesses, and extended that lead minutes later by making a 3-pointer through contact before draining the free throw.

When Stevie Mitchell, the Elmer’s bottle incarnate, got an and-one layup at the end of the Golden Eagles’ game-winning 15-5 run, making it 70-55, you could tell. And you could tell when he put an offensive rebound back up for another two points with just under three minutes to play, his second and-one being the finishing touch on Marquette’s dominant final 20 minutes which ended with a dominant double-digit win.

Before the three veterans came together at the end with their coach and fellow senior Cam Brown for their victory hug, they came together on the court to make sure that hug would happen. But they also ensured their teammates too understood to not let history repeat itself.

“We made sure our younger guys were ready and ready to attack,” Jones said.

Yeah, you could tell by how they also played.

Junior forward Ben Gold provided nine points on 3-of-5 shooting, five rebounds and four assists, including a highlight behind-the-back pass.

Chase Ross, whose availability was in question after sitting the final 20 minutes of Wednesday’s game with an ankle injury, provided 12 points and eight rebounds.

“Chase is Chase,” Jones said. “He thinks I’m playing, but some of the stuff he do with his body, I tell him he’s the closest thing to Bron (LeBron James).

“Just his body, how violent he is, and how he throws his body around and how strong and fast, how quick of a twitch he has. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Sophomore guard Tre Norman made both his baskets for four points and played strong defense for all 12 of his minutes.

“Tre Norman I thought was the biggest multiplier for us because, per minute, he had the best plus-minus,” Smart said. “He did a terrific job of helping us get stops, helping us get scores while he was in the game.”

So the Golden Eagles got the win. They bounced back from their first loss of the season earlier this week. They overcame a difficult preparation week on account of multiple injuries to key players.

“Stevie doesn’t practice much because of injury. Zaide’s been out. Kam has not practiced; he turned his ankle two days before the Iowa State game. He’s not quite been 100%. Then Chase hurt himself in the Iowa State game and he hasn’t practiced,” Smart said.

But most importantly, they jumped the tallest hurdle Smart was yet to clear in his four years at Marquette, one so lofty he mentioned the many fans who asked him all year if this would be the season he finally beats those red and white Badgers.

“I can’t tell you how many times fans have said to me ‘Are you going to beat Wisconsin this year?’” he said.

Now that calls for a hug.

This article was written by Jack Albright. He can be reached at jack.albright@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X @JackAlbrightMU.