No. 4 Marquette rallies from 12-point deficit, holds off UCLA in Maui Invitational

Nov. 21—Sean Jones hit a 3-pointer with 36 seconds left to lift the No. 4 Marquette Golden Eagles (4-0 ) past the upset-minded UCLA Bruins (3-1 ) 71-69 in the final game of the first day of the Allstate Maui Invitational at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.

Sean Jones hit a 3-pointer with 36 seconds left to lift the No. 4 Marquette Golden Eagles (4-0 ) past the upset-minded UCLA Bruins (3-1 ) 71-69 in the final game of the first day of the Allstate Maui Invitational at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.

Marquette came back from a 12-point deficit with a 17-point second-half run and also withstood two missed shots by UCLA after Jones' basket before time ran out.

"Down 12, our huddle was the huddle of a team of character, " Marquette coach Shaka Smart said.

David Joplin led Marquette with 19 points. UCLA's Sebastian Mack was game-high with 25 points, but he missed a shot at the buzzer that would have tied it.

"We took our time and stayed composed, " Joplin said. "Told each other one step at a time. I think it started with defense."

UCLA led 35-30 at halftime, and expanded the advantage to 12 points with 15 :03 left, before the Marquette comeback.

After Marquette was up 68-64 with 2 :10 left, UCLA battled back to a 69-68 lead with 53 seconds left before the clutch shot by Jones. Jones had missed all four of his previous 3-point shots, and finished with five points.

"We got rattled offensively, " UCLA coach Mick Cronin said. "They've got great players and we got rattled. It took too long to get our composure back. Too many defensive breakdowns against their penetration."