MORGANTOWN, W.Va., Feb. 24 (UPI) -- Vander Blue's two free throws with 65 seconds left Friday gave Marquette a five-point lead and the No. 10 Golden Eagles fought off West Virginia 61-60.
Marquette overcame an 11-point halftime deficit and appeared to have things under control when Blue hit his two foul shots. The Golden Eagles, however, did not score another point and survived when West Virginia's Darryl Bryant missed a jumper with 2 seconds remaining.
Marquette (24-5, 13-3 Big East Conference) won its fifth in a row and has captured 12 out of 13. The Golden Eagles are alone in second place in the conference race, two games behind Syracuse.
Jae Crowder led Marquette with 26 points, making 9-of-17 as part of a 50 percent shooting effort overall. Blue added 10.
Darryl Bryant scored 25 for the Mountaineers (17-12, 7-9). West Virginia stayed in the game by grabbing 16 offensive rebounds and limiting Marquette to six.
