MILWAUKEE, Wis. – Five players scored in double figures Tuesday and SIUE men's basketball stood tall on opening night with an 88-77 loss on the road at Marquette.

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"We brought a different level of urgency today which put us in position to win the game," SIUE Head Coach Brian Barone said. "We go into every game with the expectation to win."

Following back-to-back three-pointer to open the game for Marquette, SIUE responded with a 13-point run to which carried the Cougars through the first media timeout. Marquette worked its way back to tie the score at 17-17. The Cougars connected on 62 percent of their shots and trailed 39-38 at the break.

The Cougars tied the game at 44 early in the second half before Marquette regained the lead for good. SIUE kept the deficit to single digits until the final minute when Marquette sealed the game with made free throws.

The Golden Eagles fended off the Cougars by taking advantage of 24 SIUE turnovers to the tune of 26 points.

"We lacked some discipline against the press," Barone said. "They did a great job of capitalizing on our mistakes. We had too many plays where we broke from what we wanted to do. They were relentless. Good teams take advantage of those mistakes."

Ray'Sean Taylor led SIUE with 16 points in his first official game as a Cougar. He added five rebounds and two assists.

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"Ray plays with a pace and a passion that's internal," Barone said. "That's very impressive. There is no age on that, no experience. He sees the overall court. What he has within him matters to him. I don't expect anything less."

Shaun Doss, Jr. added 13 points in his SIUE debut and five rebounds. Carlos Curtis and Shamar Wright each scored 11 points and DeeJuan Pruitt turned in 10 points and six rebounds in his first game as a Cougar.

SIUE shot 47 percent for the game and finished with 15 assists.

"We had a focus of trying to share the ball and moving the ball," Barone said. "It was good to have a lot of guys involved in the game."

Darryl Morsell led four Marquette players in double figures with 21 points. Justin Lewis turned in a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds.

The Cougars outrebounded Marquette 42-38.

"We always want to come away better," Barone said. "We came away better than when we were when woke up today."

SIUE remains on the road to face Chicago State Friday night.

"There are some statistical areas that were good that we can build on," Barone said. "There are also some statistical areas to work on and we know what they are and that's a good thing."

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