The Bison frustrated Dominic James

The player who had saved the Golden Eagles at Valparaiso was nowhere to be found down the stretch of Saturday's game against North Dakota State. Sophomore Dominic James was subbed out of the game at the 5:13 mark of the second half – at which point he had scored just four points – and did not re-enter until the 1:34 mark. Freshman David Cubillan replaced the struggling James at the point.

"We had a stretch when we went to David in the second half where he finally played the way we've been trying to encourage him to play, showing that leadership, that talk, that 'ra-ra' spirit that you've got to have," Marquette head coach Tom Crean said.

Whether James was on the floor did not matter. Marquette trailed 47-44 when he exited and 54-48 when he came back. James finished 3-of-11 from the field for a season-low eight points.

The crowd was taken out of the game

The Bradley Center fans who had helped Marquette rally from a late deficit against Idaho State could not rattle the North Dakota State players.

"When the crowd started getting into it, we hit a couple of big shots, and it seemed like that kind of took the momentum away from them," Bison guard Mike Nelson said. "That's what you need to do if you're going to win big games against high-majors."

Nelson, who was named tournament MVP, hit a huge three-pointer to put North Dakota State up 52-46 with 2:59 left. The Bison made six consecutive free throws in the final minute to keep Marquette at arm's length and the crowd at a stunned silence.

Andre Smith's out-of-this-world performance

Perhaps the most effective crowd-silencer was Bison senior Andre Smith, who scored 26 points on 11-of-18 shooting.

When his teammate Nelson went to the bench with four fouls, Smith took over the game. Marquette's post defenders could not match Smith's quickness, as the 6-foot-8 senior used shot fakes and spin moves to get open looks in the paint. With North Dakota State up 52-48 with two minutes left, Smith made layups on consecutive possessions to extend the lead to eight.

Marquette's defense, despite forcing 25 turnovers, was exposed.

"Twenty-five turnovers don't mean anything if you can't get the stops that you need in the end," Marquette sophomore Wesley Matthews said.

Reaction to the upset:

"We got what we deserved." – Marquette sophomore Wesley Matthews

"We gotta take it as a wake-up call." – Marquette sophomore Jerel McNealSM

"Turnovers are overrated." – North Dakota State coach Tim MilesSM, whose team registered 25 turnovers in Saturday's win and 24 in a win at Wisconsin last season

"We got manhandled. . It shouldn't happen to us. And it shouldn't happen to us on our home floor." – Marquette coach Tom Crean