NCAA tournament games can also be stingy in scoring, heavy on bad luck and full of momentum swings, which means Marquette could take a lot of teaching moments from its battle with Xavier, both from its adjustments it made to get itself out of a very deep hole and the leadership required to mount a furious comeback.

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Marquette has the defense to neutralize Xavier's 87th-ranked offense. Marquette is 56th in the nation, allowing just 67.4 points per game. The one area where Marquette will have to be careful is with Xavier's three-point shooting, but the Golden Eagles have been above-average this season with a 31.7% three-point efficiency allowed.

It's Marquette vs Xavier today in a Big East game. Here's how to watch, including time, channel, TV schedule and streaming info.

If that's the case, then certainly on some level the stress a fan feels during an important game is also a privilege. Xavier could have spared us all any sort of heartburn from now until the Big East tournament if they had closed against Nova the way they've closed too many other close games this year.