Traverse City Central got things going with an early 4-0 lead. Marquette took some time to find their offensive footing, getting on the board with a Marius Grazulis triple and three minutes to go in the quarter.
A couple of Brendan Kaski triples and one from Luke Ogea gave the Redmen their first lead of the game with a score of 12-11 at the buzzer.
The second quarter saw the Redmen pull away slightly in the opening minutes. Grazulis went one for two at the line to extend Marquette to a three-point lead. The Redmen put the work in and put a few possessions between themselves and the Trojans.
Later, another Grazulis triple gave the Redmen their first double-digit lead at 27-17 with just over a minute to go in the first half. Luke Ogea went two for two at the line for a score of 29-17 at the buzzer.
The tides shifted early in the second half as the Trojans went on an 8-0 run to start the third period. The Redmen lead was slashed from twelve points to just five within a few minutes. In spite of their best efforts though, Traverse City Central could not take the lead.
Another Kaski triple, his third of the night, brought the Redmen back out to a six-point lead, but a Trojan triple to answer slashed that to three.
For every Redmen basket, the Trojans seemed to have an answer in the third period. Marquette held on to the lead just barely with a Drew Wyble lay-up improving the Redmen to 40-39 going into the final quarter.
Luke Ogea started off the fourth quarter of play with a triple for a score of 43-39. Traverse City Central, however, was ready to make a comeback.
The Trojans battled back to take a one-point lead at 49-48, their first lead since the first quarter. Central managed to carve out a five-point lead at one point. A Bryce Brazeau triple slashed that to two, and Ethan Martysz, with a huge steal, created the opportunity for Grazulis to tie it all up.
Luke Ogea gave the Redmen a brief lead with less than two minutes to go, but the Trojans tied it back up at 59-59. Tobin Schwannecke had a chance to take home the victory for the Trojans, but he couldn’t make it happen and forced the game into overtime.
Schwannecke, who was responsible for a remarkable 42 of the Trojans’ 59 points at the end of regular play, would eventually foul out of the game in overtime and the shift in momentum for the Redmen was palpable.
The Redmen ran away with the lead on a 7-0 run thanks in large part to Bryce Brazeau. He followed up going two for two at the line with a triple for a Redmen lead of 64-59.
The Redmen easily stayed out front for the remainder of the game, solidifying a chance at Alpena on Wednesday with their 74-65 victory.
The Redmen will be back in action on Wednesday, February 27th against Alpena on Fox Sports Marquette 105.1-99.9. Be sure to tune in for the pregame show at 5:30 pm, tip off is at 6:00 pm.
Listen to a recording of the live broadcast.
