After suffering a 71-63 loss to Dayton, Marquette improved to 10-2 on the season, securing their first conference win of the season. The Golden Eagles took care of Butler in Milwaukee, 80-70. The Bulldogs held a three point lead at the half, but a strong second half propelled Marquette to victory.
Maximum Effort
Second chance points and offensive rebounds were the keys to success. Marquette out-rebounded Butler 36-25, with an incredible 18-3 lead in offensive boards. The second chance opportunities proved successful for Marquette, outscoring Butler 28-7 in that department.
The Golden Eagles pride themselves on their defense. Not only did their defense prove to be a big second half factor, but they hid the fact that Marquette did not shoot the ball well. Even though they put up 80, Marquette shot just 42% from the floor overall, and 20% from three. Not a single Golden Eagle made more than one three-pointer as they finished the night 6-30.
Defensive wise, Marquette forced 14 turnovers. They only turned the ball over twice themselves, and turned the Bulldogs turnovers into 14 points. Coach Smart has to be impressed with the turnaround, coming off of the Dayton loss where they turned it over 13 times.
Scoring Sensation
In the last four of five games, Kam Jones has set the pace scoring. Jones tallied 23 points in the win, playing a team high 36 minutes. It should be noted that Jones was 11-24 from the field, attempting more field goals than both Stevie Mitchell and David Joplin combined. Don’t use that as an indicator that Jones is selfish as he recorded a team high five assists to go along with seven rebounds.
The senior’s 23 point night was just his fourth game this season finishing with 20 or more points. He rebounded well after the Dayton loss, a shocking performance after his 32 point effort against the Wisconsin Badgers. That performance certainly shifted his averages in the right direction, as he currently averages 20.3 points per game. It’s not surprising that he’s trailed by David Joplin, who averages a respectable 14.3 points per game.
A Look at the Conference
Marquette is the lone team in the Big East with 10 overall wins. Sitting at first place, they join Georgetown, St. John’s, UConn, Villanova, and Providence as teams who won their first conference matchup. Butler joins three other teams at 0-1, while DePaul finds themselves at 0-2.
Conference action is just beginning, with Marquette playing at Xavier on Saturday the 21st. The Musketeers sit at 8-4, and Marquette will be their final test in a brutal three game stretch. Xavier has lost their last two games to #22 Cincinnati, 68-65, and #11 UConn, 94-89. With just a 8 combined point loss to two ranked teams, Xavier is hungry for their first top 25 win of the season.
No matter the outcome, both teams will enjoy the holiday break before returning to an action on New Years Eve. Xavier will host Seton Hall while Marquette finds themselves on the road again at Providence. It’ll be back to back road games for the Golden Eagles after they just improved their home record to a perfect 8-0 on the season.
