Defense was the story in the first half of the annual Wisconsin-Marquette matchup. The Golden Eagles’ 2-3 zone did an effective job of containing No.2 Wisconsin’s high-powered offense, but poor shooting and even lousier rebounding is the reason the Badgers lead 25-15 at halftime. Marquette’s 15 points is its lowest total at halftime since its 2013 contest against Ohio State, a game the team lost 52-35.

Matt Carlino leads Marquette with eight points on 60 percent shooting. Carlino hit Marquette’s lone 3-pointers in the half. Steve Taylor chipped in with four points and the only other scorers for Marquette are Juan Anderson with five, Duane Wilson with two and Derrick Wilson with one.

For Wisconsin, Frank Kaminsky leads the way with eight points. Josh Gasser is the second-highest scorer with six points on consecutive 3-point baskets that extended his team’s lead to 10.

Marquette is fighting hard, especially on the defensive end, but is struggling to find anything in the lane. The Golden Eagles are shooting 6-of-21 from the field and two of those baskets were from the 3-point line. Marquette is 4-of-15 (26.7 percent) on shots inside the arc.

Marquette will need to find a way to put more points on the board in the second half from the perimeter while continuing to contain the Badgers on the other end. Wisconsin’s size and length has been a challenge for the smaller Golden Eagles and driving through the teeth of the defense may lead to more offensive struggles in the second frame.