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MILWAUKEE (AP) – Wesley Matthews and David Cubillan scored 20 points each to help No. 20 Marquette beat No. 12 Pittsburgh 75-71 on Saturday night.

Marquette (23-8, 10-6 Big East) came into the game shaky and short-handed, but looked more athletic and energetic than Pittsburgh from the opening tip – until the Panthers nearly stole the game with a late rally.

A win on Saturday night would have given Pittsburgh (25-6, 12-4 Big East) a share of the Big East regular-season title. Earlier in the day, No. 9 Georgetown clinched at least a share of the conference championship with a 59-46 victory over Connecticut.

The Golden Eagles led by 17, but Pittsburgh rallied with a 15-4 run, cutting the Marquette lead to six, 61-55, on a 3-pointer by Ronald Ramon with 3:38 remaining.

Pittsburgh's Sam Young cut the lead to four with two free throws, but Marquette freshman David Cubillan responded with his fourth 3-pointer of the game to put the Golden Eagles ahead 64-57 with 1:40 remaining.

Cubillan then hit all eight free throws in the final minute – and Marquette hit 11 of 12 overall – to stave off a final comeback attempt by Pittsburgh.

The Golden Eagles remained in the Top 25 this week despite losing four of their past five games. And Marquette was forced to play without guard Jerel McNeal on Saturday, their second-leading scorer.

McNeal missed the game in street clothes with a cast on his right hand and thumb protecting a previously undisclosed injury.

McNeal's availability for the upcoming Big East tournament is unclear.

The Golden Eagles got another injury scare when guard Dominic James left the game with what appeared to be a knee injury midway through the second half. James played only sporadically the rest of the way.

Marquette held center Aaron Gray, the Panthers' leading scorer at 14.2 points per game, in check in the first half. Gray scored 14 points in the second half to lead Pittsburgh with 18.

Gray also had a team-high 13 rebounds, his 14th double-double of the season.

Mike Cook added 13 for Pittsburgh. Ousmane Barro scored 20 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds for Marquette.

Coming into Saturday night's game, Pitt held 14 of 15 conference opponents to less than 70 points.

Marquette is the only Big East team to break the 70-point barrier against the Panthers, but needed overtime to do so the first time. The Golden Eagles defeated the Panthers 77-74 in overtime Jan. 21.

Marquette led 43-30 at halftime, holding Pittsburgh to 35.5 percent shooting – and Gray to only three shots and four points – with an effective zone defense.

The Golden Eagles hit five of 10 3-point attempts – including 2 of 3 by little-used senior center Mike Kinsella, who had scored only three points all season and hadn't attempted a 3-pointer in his college career.