No. 4 Marquette picked up one of the biggest wins of the young college basketball season Tuesday night, defeating No. 1 Kansas in the Maui Invitational semifinals at Honolulu. The game itself got testy in the first half when Golden Eagles coach Shaka Smart appeared to jaw at Jayhawks coach Bill Self after Kansas forward Kevin McCullar Jr. had talked trash to Smart following a basket.
Smart initially needed to be held back but eventually calmed down following a conversation with the referees and Self. After the game, though, Smart explained that he isn’t afraid to defend his players and team.
“We’re Marquette. We are Marquette, and we don’t take a backseat to anyone,” Smart told 94.5 ESPN Radio in Milwaukee. “If someone wants to step up and challenge us, O.K., we’re going to challenge them right back.”
