The Marquette basketball team pulled off an incredible win in Nebraska the other night against the #19 Creighton Bluejays. The two teams met in Milwaukee in December, where Marquette also walked away with the 69-58 win over one of the toughest conference opponents. The now #10 ranked Golden Eagles will face DePaul, Butler, and St. John’s before the start of the Big East Tournament.
Creighton Downed by Marquette Basketball, 73-71
The Golden Eagles came into Nebraska with a game plan already in mind following their tough wins. Marquette has been a gritty basketball team on the boards and in transition. The story of the game was controlling the boards and forcing bad shots or turnovers through stellar defense. The team was able to do just that as the Bluejays had 15 turnovers and allowed 10 steals. The Marquette basketball team went on a long run before Creighton brought the score back on big, momentum shifting plays.
Took the fight to them!#MUBB | #WeAreMarquette pic.twitter.com/K8lOpk0Kj7
— Marquette Basketball (@MarquetteMBB) February 22, 2023
Kam Jones, Tyler Kolek, and Oso Ighodaro led the scoring for the Golden Eagles. Jones dropped 19 points while Kolek and Ighodaro each had 18 points. Jones added a steal, six rebounds, and an assist. Kolek recorded four rebounds, six assists, and three steals for Marquette basketball. Another notable performance is from Stevie Mitchell, who recorded five steals and eight points in 24 minutes.
Marquette Works the Paint, Draws Fouls to Win Close Game
The first outing against the Creighton Bluejays was a much different story than the February meeting. Marquette won by 11 and scored 22 points between four bench players. The Golden Eagles shot more three pointers and less free throws in their first meeting yet still scored 42 points in the paint. Marquette followed the same game plan and hammered the paint all game long. Their strength and speed on the inside proved to be too much for the Bluejays to stop.
The Golden Eagles walked away with 46 points in the paint and 20 free throw attempts. Creighton had 16 personal fouls and played much of the second half in the bonus. Despite drawing 18 fouls, Creighton only shot 12 free throw attempts and nailed 7 of 9 in the second half. The Marquette basketball team kept forcing the Bluejays into foul trouble by getting into the paint. Rather than settling for jump shots, the Golden Eagles drove and received the foul calls they were looking for.
Marquette will host DePaul on February 25th in a Gold Out game in Milwaukee. The two teams met a few weeks ago when DePaul played hosts and the Golden Eagles rolled through the competition, 89-69. In the last outing, Tyler Kolek recorded a double-double with 24 points and 10 assists along with nine rebounds. The junior was a rebound away from an elusive triple-double. David Joplin also exploded for 28 points making 10 of 14 from the field off the bench.
The Creighton Bluejays men’s basketball team will also play February 25th against Villanova. Villanova is coming off of an upset win over Xavier as they will host the visiting Bluejays team. Their first meeting this season ended with Creighton defending their home court in a close game, 66-61. Marquette basketball will likely face one of the two teams during the conference tournament.
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