Howard leads Marquette past North Dakota State 82-68

MILWAUKEE, Wis. (AP) — Markus Howard poured in 32 points, hitting five 3-pointers along the way, and Marquette outlasted North Dakota State 82-68 on Friday night.

Howard, who came into the game second in the nation in scoring average at 25.2 points per game, sank 10 of 24 shots overall, including 5 of 11 from distance. He added four rebounds and four assists for the Golden Eagles (9-2). Howard trails only UTSA’s Jhivvan Jackson (25.5) in the scoring race. Sacar Anim had 14 points and six boards, while Coby McEwen made all eight of his free throws and scored 12.

Tyson Ward scored a season-high 25 points with nine rebounds for the Bison (8-5). Rocky Kreuser had 12 points but made just 4 of 15 shots.

Marquette led by two points at halftime before outscoring the Bison 44-32 after intermission. Ward’s dunk pulled NDSU within 63-60 with 8:26 left in the game, but Howard had a layup and a 3-pointer to ignite a 9-0 run and the Golden Eagles never looked back.