MILWAUKEE, WI – TJ Weeks Jr. (Warwick, RI/Bishop Hendricken Catholic [UMass]) compiled a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds, but the Rider University men's basketball team fell to nationally-ranked No. 5 Marquette, 95-65, Friday night at Fiserv Forum. With the loss, the Broncs fall to 1-1, while the Golden Eagles are now 2-0.

The Broncs took the Golden Eagles' initial punch and stuck with them. After Marquette scored the game's first seven points and 10 of the first 12, the Broncs scored five straight to close to within three at 12-9 and kept the deficit at three, 18-15, on a Weeks Jr. three at the 13:47 mark. But a 14-2 Marquette run pushed the advantage to 40-23 with 5:55 remaining in the half and grew to a 20-point lead shortly thereafter. A Tariq Ingraham bucket in the paint in the final minute of the half cut the deficit to 17, 49-32, at the break.

The Broncs would draw no closer in the second half with the Golden Eagles extending their lead to as many as 32 points, before settling at the final 95-65 margin.

Quotes & Notes
"In different spurts of the game, we struggled to score. We missed some free throws, which opened the game at one point. It was a five-point game. Transition defense was poor. Defending the three-point line was poor. Just executing and being more patient offensively once they get into you. Got to clean some of that stuff up" – Rider Head Coach Kevin Baggett

- The Broncs' last win over a Big East team came on Dec. 21, 2007, when Rider defeated then-Big East representative Rutgers.
- The double-double is the fourth of Weeks Jr.'s career, following three at UMass, and his first since March 2, 2022 against Fordham.
- Marquette, the nationally-ranked No. 5 team, was picked to win the BIG EAST.

Broncs by the Numbers
- Mervin James (St. Thomas, USVI/Pebblebrook [North Alabama]) scored a team-high 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor and 3-of-5 from the free-throw line. He also added eight rebounds.
- Weeks Jr. scored 14 points on 4-of-10 from the floor, including 2-of-6 from long range, and 4-of-6 from the free-throw line. He grabbed five of his career-high-tying 12 rebounds on the offensive glass and added four assists.
- Tariq Ingraham (Philadelphia, PA/Bonner-Prendergast [Wake Forest]) also finished in double figures with 11 points to go along with eight rebounds. He made 5-of-10 from the floor.
- DJ Dudley (San Diego, CA/LA Premier Prep) added nine points on 4-of-12 shooting, including 1-of-3 from long range.
- Allen Powell (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle College HS) added a team-high two steals.
- Marquette outshot the Broncs, 54.8 percent (34-62) to 39.4 percent (26-66) from the floor, including a 43.3 percent (13-30) to 26.3 percent (5-19) edge from long range.
- Marquette took a 66.7 percent (14-21) to 53.3 percent (8-15) advantage from the free-throw line.
- Rider outrebounded Marquette, 39-37, including a 14-7 edge on the offensive glass.
- Rider took a 12-7 edge in second-chance points.

Up Next
The Broncs return to action Monday, when they travel to Lincoln, NE, to take on Nebraska. Tipoff from Pinnacle Bank Arena is scheduled for 8 p.m. (ET)/7 p.m. (CT) and will be nationally-televised on Big 10 Network.