Marquette struggled early against St. John’s (Minn.), but eventually pulled away, winning 86-56 in its only exhibition matchup of the year Saturday afternoon at the Bradley Center.
All 13 Golden Eagles played in the game, led by junior college transfer Jae Crowder, who recorded his first double-double, scoring 15 points and pulling down 10 rebounds.
Crowder also finished 6-of-9 from the field and had four assists, three steals and a block.
Junior center Chris Otule, junior guard Darius Johnson-Odom, senior forward Joe Fulce, senior forward Jimmy Butler, and senior guard Dwight Buycks started for Marquette. The Golden Eagles did not lead against the Division III Johnnies until Johnson-Odom’s layup made it 11-10 with 15:22 left in the first half.
“We had a three man point rotation with Buycks, Cadougan and Smith, but Buycks started,” head coach Buzz Williams said. “He’s been the most consistent in practice, and that showed today.”
Meanwhile, Otule finished with 12 points and nine rebounds.
“It was great to get out on the court after not playing much the last two years,” Otule said. “The guards, particularly Buycks and Reggie, were able to give me confidence by feeding me down low, and I was able to convert pretty often.”
His ability to position himself against a small St. John’s team led to easy put-backs and offensive rebounds.
Marquette shot 46.4 percent for the game but struggled from the free throw line, converting just 17 of 30 attempts (56.7 percent).
Butler showed an ability to get to the rim at will and draw fouls. He was inconsistent from the charity stripe, however — hitting only five of 10 from the line for the game — and finished with just nine points.
He will have to be much more consistent for Marquette to win games this season.
Freshman guard Reggie Smith displayed his excellent court vision and tremendous speed, finishing with eight points and seven assists.
Freshman forward Davante Gardner was the last player off the bench, but he was able to contribute three points and a steal in just seven minutes of action.
