Marquette knew entering the season that defense would have to be a priority. The team exclusively focused on defensive drills for the first two weeks of practice, not even touching a basketball.
That defensive progression had a hiccup Saturday, though, as Marquette barely edged out Lindenwood, 81-79, in an exhibition game at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.
The Division II school from St. Charles, Missouri, had multiple chances to win the game in the final seconds. With nine seconds left, Lions guard Jackson Price missed a contested layup. Markus Howard, who shot 88.9 percent from the charity stripe last year, got the rebound and was fouled.