Sunday State Sports Briefs: Second half effort pushes MU to win

• Marquette Golden Eagles

Marquette Golden Eagles

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MILWAUKEE - The inconsistent Marquette Golden Eagles used a monster second half to pull away from winless Centenary for an 81-52 win Saturday night.

Darius Johnson-Odom scored 14 of his 16 points after half to lead the Eagles. Marquette coach Buzz Williams says injuries, lack of experience and immaturity are all factors in his team's inconsistent play. Marquette's record is 8-3 after the non-conference win. Freshman Vander Blue matched Odom's 16 points at the top of the Golden Eagle scoring sheet. Jimmy Butler had 10 points and a dozen rebounds. Marquette blew a relatively close game wide open by scoring a dozen straight points in the second half. The lead got as big as 30 points in the closing seconds.

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The Milwaukee Bucks couldn't hold a double-digit lead, dropping a 95-86 decision to Utah Saturday. Andrew Bogut scored 19 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the defeat. John Salmons came back from a back injury to score 18. The Jazz went on a 13-2 run late in the game to ice the win and avoid losing consecutive games for the first time since the season's first two games. Deron Williams had 22 points and 11 assists to lead Utah.

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Every shot Tone Boyle took was beyond the three-point line and he hit seven of them, scoring 22 points and leading the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee past Bowling Green 72-69. Tony Meier added 20 for the Panthers. Boyle hit three long shots down the stretch to ice the win. Two of them came during an 8-0 run that put Milwaukee on top, 62-61, with a little less than five minutes remaining. Boyle's hit another long one with three minutes to go to put Milwaukee on top to stay.

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November 30, 2008, is the last time the New England Patriots lost a home game. Playing without starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers makes that huge task even harder for the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football. The Patriots have won 15 straight home games in Foxborough. New England carries an 11-2 record and five straight wins into the game against Green Bay. If the Jets lose today, a win over the Packers would make New England the AFC East Division Champion and give the Patriots a first-round bye in the NFL Playoffs. Patriot quarterback Tom Brady is red-hot, throwing 19 touchdown passes with no interceptions in his last eight games. Coach Mike McCarthy and the Green Bay medical staff made the decision yesterday to keep starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers on the sidelines for the first time in 47 games, making a win over the Pats even harder. The team will go with Matt Flynn.

SCORES

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

--Division I Women

Marquette 75, North Carolina-Asheville 46

UW-Green Bay 72, Evansville 48

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--Division III Men

Beloit 75, Lakeland 62

St. Mary's (MD) 89, Lawrence 80

St. Norbert 65, Lake Forest 47

UW-Stout 98, Viterbo 77

UW-Whitewater 82, Marian 71

Wisconsin Lutheran 73, Silver Lake 61

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--Division III Women

Beloit 64, Lakeland 54

Coe 82, Edgewood 58

UW-River Falls 71, Concordia-Mequon 57

UW-Stout 82, Northland 53

Wisconsin Lutheran 76, Blackburn 55

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AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE

Chicago Wolves 5, Milwaukee Admirals 1

Tags: wisconsin sports, sports, proam